Germany: PDS makes big electoral gains

In elections held on September 19 in two eastern German 
federal states (Lander), the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) 
substantially improved its vote. The Social Democratic Party of 
Germany (SPD) and Christian Democratic Union (CDU — conservatives)
suffered heavy losses.

The two regions were Brandenburg (around Berlin) and 
industrialised Saxony, both in the east of Germany, the former 
socialist German Democratic Republic (GDR).

In a statement issued following the elections the PDS described 
the results as important milestones in the political development 
of the two regions. They are an indication of the loss of support 
for the policies of the main political parties. The PDS proved 
itself to be a strong political force in the east.

The election results were a protest against the neo-liberal 
course of the SPD-Green federal government in the economic and 
social fields. For the first time in years the conservative CDU, 
which is pushing the government to dismantle the German welfare 
state even quicker, was repudiated by voters for its hypocritical 
stance.

In the Brandenburg state the Social Democratic Party received 
31.9 percent of the vote, down by 7.4 percent compared to the 
elections of 1999.

The vote of the conservative CDU which had announced that it 
would take the lead in the region dropped to 19.4 percent — a 
loss of 7.1 percent.

Record result

By receiving 28 percent — an increase of 4.7 percent — the PDS 
scored a record result. The Party's share of the votes for 
individual candidates in each electoral district reached 31.2 
percent. While winning five electoral districts in 1999, the PDS 
now holds 23 — winning all these seats from the SPD. This is a 
sign of the high confidence of voters in the candidates of the 
PDS for their many years of struggle in the interests of the 
people, said the PDS statement.

In Saxony, the conservative CDU has been governing alone with a 
comfortable absolute majority since the GDR was taken over by 
West Germany. It suffered a land-slide loss of 15.8 percent. 
However, with 41.1 percent of the total vote it continues to hold 
first place. The SPD sank to an historic low of 9.8 percent.

In that state, the PDS was the only state parliamentary party to 
increase its vote — to 23.6 percent, up by 1.4 percent — thus 
preserving its place as the second party and leader of the 
opposition.

The result could have been better were it not for a smear 
campaign by the political adversaries of the PDS and by a section 
of the media making unproven Stasi accusations against the top 
candidate of the PDS. The fact that the party nevertheless rose 
in strength shows the minimal effect such tactics have today 
among voters in eastern Germany.

In Saxony, the rising neo-nazi threat showed itself in a dramatic 
way. For the first time in 24 years, the National-Democratic 
Party of Germany (NPD) managed to enter a Lander parliament with 
a score of 9.2 percent — nearly as much as the social democrats 
received in this state.

The neo-nazis' hate propaganda had an effect on frustrated young 
people, mainly male voters, and on people in Germany's eastern 
border regions who fear an influx of cheap labour from eastern 
Europe with the entry of Poland, the Czech Republic and other 
states to the EU. Migrants are portrayed as the main source of 
Germany's social problems.

The neo-Nazi German People's Union (DVU) managed to get 6.1 
percent in Brandenburg, an increase of 0.8 percent. This party, 
which is the property of a Bavarian entrepreneur, scored the 
result by influencing people's minds with primitive, extreme 
right, intolerant, xenophobic slogans and by a huge outpouring of 
propaganda material across the state, especially in the 
countryside.

For the first time the different neo-nazi parties acted in a 
coordinated way. All democratic parties, including the PDS, have 
to find more effective ways of showing the people the dangers and 
the uselessness of supporting the brown demagogues, the PDS 
warned.

The PDS has decided to give more support to the existing anti-
fascist organisations, to take initiatives and undertake projects 
where many members of the Party are actively involved.

The PDS statement said that the Party, together with the social 
movements, would stick to its line of consistent struggle against 
government policies. It will defend the interests of the working 
people and the unemployed and put forward concrete proposals to 
change the disastrous neo-liberal course of the government.