Keeping the red flag flying: The electoral success of the PDS in East Berlin

Journal of Communist Studies and Transition Politics

Volumn 16, Issue 3, 2000, Pages 1-20

  McKay, Joanna ^a  

^a NONE

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

ELECTORAL GEOGRAPHY; PARTY POLITICS; POST-COMMUNISM; VOTING BEHAVIOR;

BERLIN; GERMANY;

EID: 0033784282     PISSN: 13523279     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/13523270008415438     Document Type: Article

References (74)

1. For example, Christine Ostrowski of the PDS in Saxony heavily criticized the objective of western expansion and the implantation of 'politourists' from the West German left into the East, for which she received a dressing-down from the party leadership: 'Zwischen DDR und Moderne', Die Zeit, 23 April 1998, p.4.
2. In the Berlin Land parliament the PDS currently has 34 members (out of a total of 206) and is in opposition along side Bündnis 90/Die Grünen (Alliance 90/The Greens); Berlin has been governed by a grand coalition since 1991.
3. In 1990 the PDS polled 23.6 per cent in the east, 1.1 per cent in the west and 9.2 per cent in Berlin overall.
4. In the most recent Land elections elsewhere in Eastern Germany, the results for the PDS were as follows: Brandenburg (1994) - 18.7 per cent; Thüringen (1994) - 16.6 per cent; SaxonAnhalt (1998) - 19.3 per cent; Saxony (1994) - 16.5 per cent; Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (1998) - 24.4 per cent (Source: Landeswahlleiter).
5. Gerald R. Kleinfeld, 'The Return of the PDS', in D. Conradt et al. (eds.), Germany's New Politics (Providence, RI, and Oxford: Berghahn, 1995), p.242; Geoffrey Roberts, Party Politics in the New Germany (London: Pinter, 1997), p.179.
6. Gerald R. Kleinfeld, 'The Return of the PDS', in D. Conradt et al. (eds.), Germany's New Politics (Providence, RI, and Oxford: Berghahn, 1995), p.242; Geoffrey Roberts, Party Politics in the New Germany (London: Pinter, 1997), p.179.
7. Source: Statistisches Landesamt Berlin. At the time of writing, the party's web-site gives a membership figure of 'about 19,000' for the whole of Berlin.
8. For more details of PDS voters in the 1995 Berlin election, see Joanna McKay, 'The Wall in the Ballot Box: The Berlin Election of 1995', German Politics, Vol.5, No.2 (1996), p.278.
9. According to Lothar Probst, in Rostock over 50 per cent of members are over 60 years old: see his 'Die PDS in Rostock', in Peter Barker (ed.), The Party of Democratic Socialism in Germany: Modern Post-Communism or Nostalgic Populism? (Amsterdam and Atlanta, GA: Rodopi, 1998), pp.59, 71; Nicholas Hubble confirms that this is also the case in Thuringia: see his 'The PDS in Erfurt and the Erfurter Erklärung', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, p.92.
10. According to Lothar Probst, in Rostock over 50 per cent of members are over 60 years old: see his 'Die PDS in Rostock', in Peter Barker (ed.), The Party of Democratic Socialism in Germany: Modern Post-Communism or Nostalgic Populism? (Amsterdam and Atlanta, GA: Rodopi, 1998), pp.59, 71; Nicholas Hubble confirms that this is also the case in Thuringia: see his 'The PDS in Erfurt and the Erfurter Erklärung', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, p.92.
11. This was admitted to the author by Petra Pau, Bundestag member (MdB) and member of the Berlin Parliament (MdA) in an interview in Berlin, 5 Nov. 1997.
12. Kleinfeld, 'The Return of the PDS', p.241; for more comments about the membership and structure of the PDS, see pp.224-6.
13. This is also true of the PDS elsewhere and at federal level: see 'Zwischen DDR und Moderne', p.4.
14. Alliance 90, an alliance of East German civil rights groups formed in 1990, merged with the Greens in March 1993.
15. On the issue of ideological diversity within the PDS in general, see Roberts, Party Politics in the New Germany, pp. 178-9.
16. According to the party programme, 'the PDS includes people of different philosophies, ideologies, and religions whose common ground lies in their intentions to try to introduce fundamental social change': cited in Kleinfeld, 'The Return of the PDS', p.226.
17. See, for example, the work of the prolific PDS expert, Patrick Moreau, including Die PDS: Profil einer antidemokratischer Partei (Munich: Hanns Seidel Stiftung, 1998).
18. The seven groups are: Kommunistische Plattform; Arbeitsgemeinschaft Junge Genossen in und bei der PDS; Arbeitsgemeinschaft Autonome Gruppen in und bei der PDS; Kommunistische Arbeitsgemeinschaft in und bei der PDS; Forum West; Marxistisches Forum; and PDS Bezirksorganisation Kreuzberg. The surveillance question was decided by the Berlin Parliament's Committee for the Protection of the Constitution on 23 April 1997 (source: Drucksache 13/92).
19. 'PDS Abgeordnete wollen sich nicht "gauken" lassen', Berliner Morgenpost, 19 Oct. 1997.
20. This point was made by Harald Wolf, MdA (author's interview, Berlin, 22 Nov. 1997) and by Petra Pau, MdB, MdA (author's interview, Berlin, 5 Nov. 1997). The unemployment rate in East and West Berlin has consistently been very similar in recent years (16.3 per cent across the capital in February 1999: source: Bundesanstalt für Arbeit). By contrast, the average West German unemployment rate is about half that of eastern Germany.
21. In German, 'gesamtstädtisch-sozialistisch oder gar nicht'. For source, see Pau's manifesto for the 1998 federal election at 〈http://members.aol.com.PDSholt249/〉.
22. See, for example Henry Krisch, 'Searching for Voters: PDS Mobilization Strategies, 1994-97', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, pp.47-8; Günter Minnerup, 'The PDS and the Strategic Dilemmas of the German Left', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, pp.216-18.
23. See, for example Henry Krisch, 'Searching for Voters: PDS Mobilization Strategies, 1994-97', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, pp.47-8; Günter Minnerup, 'The PDS and the Strategic Dilemmas of the German Left', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, pp.216-18.
24. For an interesting though rather dated summary of the party's programme, see Kleinfeld, 'The Return of the PDS', pp. 226-30.
25. At the Land party conference, Berlin, 22-23 Nov. 1997, tension between ordinary members and party functionaries and local MPs was evident to the author.
26. 'Sozialistische Bürgerrechtspartei für den Osten', Die Tageszeitung, 13 June 1997.
27. In 1995 and again in 1998, they suggested the former West German permanent representative in East Berlin, Günter Gaus: see PDS Landesverband Berlin, press release, 19 March 1998.
28. See Schilderstürmer Bilderstürmer. Der Berliner Kulturkampf um Strassenschilder, a pamphlet published in June 1997 by the PDS Fraktion in the Berlin parliament,
29. For an account of the significance of this issue, see Mark Duckenfield and Noel Calhoun, 'Invasion of the Western Ampelmännchen', German Politics, Vol.6, No.3 (1997), pp.54-69.
30. Indeed, Kaase and Klingemann have argued that the 'level of non-identification with any of the political parties' is 'the most important difference between East and West Germany': cited in Helga Welsh, 'Five Years and Several Elections Later', in Conradt, Germany's New Politics, p.51.
31. For a good introduction to differences between the East and West German electorates, see Russell J. Dalton, 'A Divided Electorate?', in G. Smith, W. Paterson and S. Padgett (eds.), Developments in German Politics 2 (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1996), pp.35-54.
32. Gordon Smith's is typical of early explanations: 'Its appeal is twofold: on one level the PDS is a vehicle for protest against the policies that are held responsible for the economic malaise in the former GDR, and on the other it can be interpreted as a form of cultural defence expressing the resentment felt towards the perceived haughty disregard on the part of West Germans for any positive aspects of all of East German society': see Smith, 'Dimensions of Change in the German Party System', in Stephen Padgett (ed.), Parties and Party Systems in the New Germany (Aldershot: Dartmouth, 1993), p.98; see also Kleinfeld, 'The Return of the PDS', pp.237-46 (on the 1994 elections); David Conradt, 'The 1994 Campaign and Election: an Overview', in Conradt, Germany's New Politics, p.14; Hans-Georg Betz and Helga A. Welsh, 'The PDS in the new German Party System', German Politics. Vol.4, No.3 (1995), pp.97-107; Beatrice Harper, 'Why does the PDS Reach the Parts Bündnis 90/Die Grünen can't Reach?', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, pp.98-103.
33. Gordon Smith's is typical of early explanations: 'Its appeal is twofold: on one level the PDS is a vehicle for protest against the policies that are held responsible for the economic malaise in the former GDR, and on the other it can be interpreted as a form of cultural defence expressing the resentment felt towards the perceived haughty disregard on the part of West Germans for any positive aspects of all of East German society': see Smith, 'Dimensions of Change in the German Party System', in Stephen Padgett (ed.), Parties and Party Systems in the New Germany (Aldershot: Dartmouth, 1993), p.98; see also Kleinfeld, 'The Return of the PDS', pp.237-46 (on the 1994 elections); David Conradt, 'The 1994 Campaign and Election: an Overview', in Conradt, Germany's New Politics, p.14; Hans-Georg Betz and Helga A. Welsh, 'The PDS in the new German Party System', German Politics. Vol.4, No.3 (1995), pp.97-107; Beatrice Harper, 'Why does the PDS Reach the Parts Bündnis 90/Die Grünen can't Reach?', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, pp.98-103.
34. Gordon Smith's is typical of early explanations: 'Its appeal is twofold: on one level the PDS is a vehicle for protest against the policies that are held responsible for the economic malaise in the former GDR, and on the other it can be interpreted as a form of cultural defence expressing the resentment felt towards the perceived haughty disregard on the part of West Germans for any positive aspects of all of East German society': see Smith, 'Dimensions of Change in the German Party System', in Stephen Padgett (ed.), Parties and Party Systems in the New Germany (Aldershot: Dartmouth, 1993), p.98; see also Kleinfeld, 'The Return of the PDS', pp.237-46 (on the 1994 elections); David Conradt, 'The 1994 Campaign and Election: an Overview', in Conradt, Germany's New Politics, p.14; Hans-Georg Betz and Helga A. Welsh, 'The PDS in the new German Party System', German Politics. Vol.4, No.3 (1995), pp.97-107; Beatrice Harper, 'Why does the PDS Reach the Parts Bündnis 90/Die Grünen can't Reach?', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, pp.98-103.
35. Gordon Smith's is typical of early explanations: 'Its appeal is twofold: on one level the PDS is a vehicle for protest against the policies that are held responsible for the economic malaise in the former GDR, and on the other it can be interpreted as a form of cultural defence expressing the resentment felt towards the perceived haughty disregard on the part of West Germans for any positive aspects of all of East German society': see Smith, 'Dimensions of Change in the German Party System', in Stephen Padgett (ed.), Parties and Party Systems in the New Germany (Aldershot: Dartmouth, 1993), p.98; see also Kleinfeld, 'The Return of the PDS', pp.237-46 (on the 1994 elections); David Conradt, 'The 1994 Campaign and Election: an Overview', in Conradt, Germany's New Politics, p.14; Hans-Georg Betz and Helga A. Welsh, 'The PDS in the new German Party System', German Politics. Vol.4, No.3 (1995), pp.97-107; Beatrice Harper, 'Why does the PDS Reach the Parts Bündnis 90/Die Grünen can't Reach?', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, pp.98-103.
36. Gordon Smith's is typical of early explanations: 'Its appeal is twofold: on one level the PDS is a vehicle for protest against the policies that are held responsible for the economic malaise in the former GDR, and on the other it can be interpreted as a form of cultural defence expressing the resentment felt towards the perceived haughty disregard on the part of West Germans for any positive aspects of all of East German society': see Smith, 'Dimensions of Change in the German Party System', in Stephen Padgett (ed.), Parties and Party Systems in the New Germany (Aldershot: Dartmouth, 1993), p.98; see also Kleinfeld, 'The Return of the PDS', pp.237-46 (on the 1994 elections); David Conradt, 'The 1994 Campaign and Election: an Overview', in Conradt, Germany's New Politics, p.14; Hans-Georg Betz and Helga A. Welsh, 'The PDS in the new German Party System', German Politics. Vol.4, No.3 (1995), pp.97-107; Beatrice Harper, 'Why does the PDS Reach the Parts Bündnis 90/Die Grünen can't Reach?', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, pp.98-103.
37. Wolfgang Gibowski, 'Germany's General Election in 1994', in Conradt, Germany's New Politics, p. 128.
38. Berlin PDS party conference, Berlin, 22 Nov. 1997.
39. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 24 Oct. 1995.
40. Author's interview with Petra Pau, MdB, MdA, Berlin, 5 Nov. 1997.
41. The importance of Gysi for the overall success of the PDS is examined by Klȩinfeld, 'The Return of the PDS', p.233-4.
42. This correlation was noted by the Statistisches Landesamt Berlin and by researchers at the Freie Universität Berlin: reported in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 4 Nov. 1995.
43. The CDU polled 14.7 per cent in East Berlin compared with 29.5 per cent in West Berlin at the 1998 Federal election, and 23.6 per cent against 45.4 per cent at the Berlin election of 1995.
44. At the end of 1997 the CDU had 12,351 members in West Berlin, compared with 2,005 in East Berlin, down from 3,271 at the beginning of 1991 (source: Statistisches Landesamt Berlin).
45. Hintze was behind a poster that portrayed the SPD and PDS hand-in-hand - an allusion to the forced merger of the SPD and KPD to form the SED in the Soviet Zone in 1946.
46. PDS supporters were equated with the 'red socks' of the past, a euphemism for members of the SED during the GDR period; for more detail, see Kleinfeld, 'The Return of the PDS', p.236
47. 'CDU-Parteitag: Ostler greifen Landowsky an', Berliner Morgenpost, 3 Nov. 1996.
48. 'Schaut man sich die neuen Freunde an . . . ', Frankfurter Rundschau, 22 Jan. 1997.
49. Erfurter Erklärung. Verantwortung für die soziale Demokratie (Berlin and Erfurt, 9 Jan. 1997). For an exploration of the significance of this declaration, see Hubble, 'The PDS in Erfurt', pp.84-7.
50. Erfurter Erklärung. Verantwortung für die soziale Demokratie (Berlin and Erfurt, 9 Jan. 1997). For an exploration of the significance of this declaration, see Hubble, 'The PDS in Erfurt', pp.84-7.
51. CDU Fraktion, Rügener Erklärung (18 April 1997).
52. They included Günther Nooke, Angelika Barbe and Erhard Neubert.
53. This view was held by Martin Federlein of the CDU (author's interview, Berlin, 3 Nov. 1997), and it was a fear of the SPD's Hans-Peter Seitz, MdA (author's interview, Berlin, 24 Nov. 1997).
54. Author's interview with Martin Federlein, Berlin, 3 Nov. 1997.
55. The SPD polled 35.1 per cent in East Berlin and 39.6 per cent in West Berlin in the 1998 federal election; in the Berlin election of 1995 the figures were 20.2 per cent in the east and 25.5 per cent in the west; membership stood at 2,720 in East Berlin at the end of 1997 (18,004 in the west), an increase since the end of 1990 when it stood at 1,799 (source: Statistisches Landesamt Berlin).
56. For an examination of SPD-PDS relations in general, see Klaus-Jürgen Scherer, 'Die SPD und die PDS', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, pp.182-93; Eckhard Jesse, 'SPD and PDS Relationships', German Politics, Vol.6, No.3 (1997), pp.89-102.
57. For an examination of SPD-PDS relations in general, see Klaus-Jürgen Scherer, 'Die SPD und die PDS', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, pp.182-93; Eckhard Jesse, 'SPD and PDS Relationships', German Politics, Vol.6, No.3 (1997), pp.89-102.
58. 'Berliner SPD will die PDS ignorieren', Berliner Zeitung, 22 Sept. 1997.
59. At the end of 1997 the Greens had 2,507 members in West Berlin and 615 in the east (source: Statistisches Landesamt Berlin). In the Federal election 1998 the party polled 13.5 per cent in the west of the city compared with 7.9 per cent in the east; the figures for the 1995 Berlin election are 15 per cent in the West compared with 10 per cent in the East.
60. For a general discussion of Green - PDS relationships see Elisabeth Schroedter, 'Die Ausseinandersetzung on Bündnis 90/Die Grünen mit der PDS', in Barker, The Party of Democratic Socialism, pp. 194-208.
61. This is the view of Ida Schulen, MdA (author's interview, Berlin, 13 Nov. 1997).
62. 'PDS bleibt für die Grünen Reizthema', Der Tagesspiegel, 26 Aug. 1997.
63. 'Kein Sozialismus auf der Straßenkreuzung'. Süddeutsche Zeitung, 13 Nov. 1996.
64. 'Die Grünen im PDS-Spagat', Die Tageszeitung, 23 Jan. 1997.
65. On the impact of the PDS on the German party system in general, see Roberts, Party Politics in the New Germany, pp. 176-7.
66. At the 1995 local election the far right Republikaner polled 2.9 per cent in East Berlin and at the end of 1997 had 266 members there (source: Statistisches Landesamt Berlin). At the 1998 federal election, right-wing extremist parties polled a total of 6.2 per cent in the east of the capital compared with 4.1 per cent in the west (source: Bundeswahlleiter).
67. The DVU won 12.9 per cent of the vote in the Sachsen-Anhalt Land election of 1998 but support fell to just 3.2 per cent at the federal election just six months later (figures from Bundeswahlleiter).
68. See Petra Pau's press release, 26 March 1998; also Manfred Müller's election manifesto, at 〈http://home.ipn.de/~pdshsh/MM.HTM〉.
69. Author's interview with Petra Pau, MdB, MdA, Berlin, 5 Nov. 1997; see also PDS Landesverband Berlin, press release, 2 Feb. 1998.
70. 'Online-Chat mit Petra Pau', 18 Aug. 1998, at 〈www.pds-online.de/berlin/lv/chat/frameset/htm〉.
71. The figures for the 1994 election were East Berlin 37.4 per cent. West Berlin 2.6 per cent. Berlin overall 14.8 per cent.
72. Figures from 〈www.bundestag.de〉.
73. Constituency of Kreuzberg-Schöneberg; figure from 〈www.bundestag.de〉.
74. Author's interview with Harald Wolf, Berlin 22 Nov. 1997. Wolf, a West German who left the Greens to join the PDS, first expressed concern about his party's chances in the West in 1991, according to Henry Krisch: see Krisch, 'From SED to PDS: The Struggle to Revive a Left Party', in Russell J. Dalton (ed.), The New Germany Votes (Oxford and Providence, RI: Berg, 1993), p.181.