Election campaign
“The party” is wooing voters with the help of fare evaders
In the federal election campaign, “The Party” is focusing attention on the issue of local transport with a campaign for fare evaders. If you get caught, you don’t have to pay. But the action has limits.
Vote-catching of a slightly different kind: The satire party of ex-“Titanic” editor-in-chief Martin Sonneborn says it wants to provide financial support to up to 1,000 fare evaders. “We will cover the increased transport fee for up to 1,000 voters until the federal election. Fare evasion has never been so cheap,” said Sonneborn to the “Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung” (NOZ).
According to the report, the money for this comes from a so-called 9 euro fund, a campaign under the party’s umbrella. This was started when the 9 euro ticket expired, which was intended to cushion the high energy prices in June, July and August 2022. For a monthly contribution of nine euros, registered members of the campaign fund could have the increased transport fee reimbursed if they were caught fare evading. Membership will become free at the turn of the year, but reimbursement will be limited to a maximum of 1,000 cases.
According to information on the campaign page on the Internet, more than 207,000 euros have been raised so far and fare evasion fees have been paid in more than 2,500 cases.
Sonneborn for free public transport
The EU parliamentarian Sonneborn described the fund as a success. “Countless fare evaders have been saved from prison,” he said. For years, people have been calling for fare evasion to no longer be classified as a criminal offense but as an administrative offense. Sonneborn spoke out in favor of free public transport.
dpa
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
