Direct democracy in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania

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The Direct Democracy in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania includes a number of policy instruments that allow the population eligible to vote directly on the legislation of the country Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania as well as in the management of municipalities and counties can participate. The people's legislation supplements the existing instruments of representative democracy , i.e. the election of people's representatives to the state parliament or to the municipal councils and district assemblies .

Direct democracy at the state level

The legal basis for the people's legislation , consisting of a popular initiative , referendum and referendum , are Artt. 59–60 of the state constitution , the so-called referendum law (VaG) as well as the regulation for the implementation of the law for the execution of initiatives from the people, referendums and referendums in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (VoBegGDV MV).

Popular initiative

Process of a popular initiative in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania

The first stage of direct democracy in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is the popular initiative . However, it is not mandatory to bring about a referendum . The popular initiative in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania does not have to be aimed at passing a law. It can also force the state parliament to deal with other subjects of political decision-making.

If 15,000 eligible voters have signed the popular initiative, the state parliament must deal with its subject. If the initiative is successful, its representatives have the right to be heard. Initiatives on the state budget , on taxes and salaries cannot be the subject of a popular initiative. As with the referendum, the applicants bear the costs of collecting the supporters' signatures. There is no deadline in which the signatures have to be collected.

Previous popular initiatives
year Title / subject Result
1994 Social rights in the constitution declined
1994 Equal opportunities for all children living in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania on support in a day-care center declined
1995 Creation of socially acceptable legal prerequisites for the planned transition of price-linked rents to a comparative rent system in the new federal states declared done
1995 An ecological, social and democratic law for local public transport (ÖPNV) in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania declared done
1997 Against the closure of the dentistry course and the dental clinic at the University of Rostock declined
1998 Pro A 20 / Rügen connection accepted
1998 A future for young people - initial vocational training and employment for young people accepted
1999 For the re-establishment of the dentistry course and the maintenance of the clinic and polyclinic for dentistry, oral and maxillofacial medicine at the University of Rostock accepted
1999 Pro A 241 accepted
1999 Against a two-class medicine in the east accepted
1999 We stop the spelling reform declined
2004 Amendment of the new law on the promotion of children in day-care centers and day care declined
2007 For the freedom of research and teaching at the University of Rostock - Against the closure of the law course declined
2007 For a cosmopolitan, peaceful and tolerant Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (amendment of the state constitution) accepted
2008 For a free lunch for pupils at the state primary schools in the state of MV declined
2008 No coal-fired power plant in Lubmin declined
2012 For the maintenance of the theater and orchestra structures in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania declined
2012 For a minimum wage of 10 euros per hour declined
2012 For the preservation of a citizen-friendly court structure in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania accepted
2015 Against the uncontrolled expansion of wind energy failed because the legislative competence (state opening clause) passed back from the state to the federal government on January 1, 2016
2016 For the preservation of the Wolgast Hospital declined

Referendum

Process of referendums and referendums in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania

If a popular initiative has been dealt with and rejected by the state parliament, the representatives of the initiative can convert it into a popular initiative and request the interpretation of lists of signatures from the municipal authorities. However, the popular initiative can also be initiated without a preceding popular initiative. The registration period with the municipal authorities is two months. Regardless of this, there is the possibility of freely collecting signatures for the referendum. The same applies if the state parliament has not decided on a formally correct popular initiative within three months.

A referendum must be supported by at least 100,000 eligible voters within five months in order to be successful. Measured against the number of eligible voters in the 2011 state elections, this corresponds to 7.2 percent of those eligible to vote. By 2006, 140,000 signatures had to be collected. From 2006 to 2016, 120,000 signatures had to be collected.

As with a successful popular initiative, the state parliament must also deal with a successful popular initiative. If the state parliament accepts the coveted bill within six months, essentially unchanged, the legislative process is completed. Otherwise there will be a referendum.

The first referendum in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the aim of which was a new school law, failed in 2007 because the required number of signatures could not be collected.

In March 2014, the Association of Judges and the Pro Justiz Association launched a referendum, supported by local politicians from all parties, against a reform of the judicial structure passed by the state parliament in October 2013 , which among other things provides for a reduction in the number of local courts in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania from 21 to 10 and has been implemented since October 2014 . Initially, signature lists were available in local courts, law firms and town halls, but Justice Minister Uta-Maria Kuder forbade the judges' association to display the lists in the courts. By mid-August 2014, the initiators had collected over 100,000 signatures. In view of the emerging success of the popular initiative, Kuder forbade the district court directors to provide information on the status of the implementation of the judicial structural reform. On December 9, 2014, the initiators of the popular initiative handed over 150,000 signatures to the President of the State Parliament, Sylvia Bretschneider . The counting and verification of votes was completed when 120,312 valid signatures were found. The referendum against the reform of the judicial structure is thus the only successful referendum in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania to date.

Referendum

The state parliament must decide on a successful referendum within six months. A referendum is held at the earliest three and no later than six months after the state parliament rejects the request . The state parliament can submit its own, competing bill on the subject of the referendum to the people for decision.

A majority of those who vote is required to pass the bill. In addition, the quorum is that at least a quarter of those eligible to vote must have approved. By 2016, a third of those eligible to vote had to agree. In the case of constitutional changes , a two-thirds majority of the voters is required, and at least half of the eligible voters must have approved. The state bears the costs of the referendum.

The referendum on the reform of the judicial structure , which was spuriously failed on September 6, 2015, is the first and so far only referendum that was carried out through popular legislation .

referendum

There was also a referendum on the state constitution of the newly founded state . It took place on June 12, 1994 together with the local elections and the European elections. Previously, the members of the state parliament had passed the constitution on May 14, 1993. In this referendum, the rule was that the constitution was adopted regardless of the level of voter turnout if more than half of the valid votes were cast with “yes”. With a turnout of 65.5 percent, 60.1 percent of the voters voted for and 39.9 percent against the adoption of the constitution. The constitution was thus adopted.

Direct democracy in communities and districts

Since May 1990, admitted communal constitution of the GDR citizens with an opportunity at the local level by citizens request and referendum directly democratically a say. The GDR municipal constitution continued to apply after the re-establishment of the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and accession to the Federal Republic of Germany until the new federal state passed its own municipal code on June 12, 1994 . Since then, the legal basis for the resident application, the referendum and the referendum has been § 20 of the new municipal constitution. This was last changed in 2011 without changing the direct democratic procedures. In contrast to the other new federal states, the procedural hurdles were lowered compared to the municipal constitution of the GDR in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and instead of a rigid quorum of signatures of ten percent, a degressive staggering between 10 and around 4.4 percent was introduced, depending on the size of the municipality.

Resident application

Residents who have reached the age of 14 can apply for an important matter to be dealt with in the municipal council . The resident application justified in writing must be signed by at least five percent or by at least 2000 residents.

Citizens' petitions and initiation of a council referendum

Citizens' decisions can be initiated in the municipalities and districts through a referendum . In addition to the question to be decided, the request must also contain a reason and a proposal to cover costs for the requested measure. Signatures must be collected from at least ten percent of the electorate or from at least 4,000 citizens. The signatures can be collected free, a duty of the Official entry does not exist in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. In principle, there is also no deadline in which the signatures must be collected, but a request against a resolution of the municipal council must be made within six weeks of its announcement.

In addition to a referendum, a referendum can also be initiated as a representative petition by the majority of the municipal council members. A referendum on the removal of the mayor can only be brought about by a resolution of the municipal council with a two-thirds majority.

Which matters can be the subject of a referendum is strictly regulated. It must be a matter of the municipality or district's own sphere of activity, for which the municipal council or the district council is responsible. So it must not be the responsibility of the mayor or the district administrator. The subject of a referendum can, however, be a municipal statement on the projects of other organizations. Excluded are referendums on the internal organization of the administration , the legal status of persons full-time or volunteer for the community, decisions under the municipal budget , Audit - and levy system and in this context, decisions on tariffs and municipal enterprises , decisions on the Creation, modification and cancellation of zoning plans as well as other matters that are to be decided within the framework of a plan approval procedure or a formal administrative procedure with public participation or a waste law , pollution control law , water law or comparable approval procedure, participation in municipal cooperation, statutes through which a connection or Compulsory use is regulated, as well as requests that pursue an illegal goal. Matters on which a referendum has already taken place within the last two years are also excluded. The municipal council or the district council will decide on the admissibility of the referendum and the time of the referendum immediately after the signature lists have been submitted. The local government must obtain an opinion from the legal supervisory authority on the legal admissibility of the request and attach it to the draft resolution.

Referendum

A successful referendum results in a referendum. A majority of valid votes, which must make up at least 25 percent of those entitled to vote, is necessary for its success. In small communities, a referendum can also be carried out through an open vote at a residents' meeting . The municipal council can still prevent an approved petition by adopting the required measure. A mayor can only be recalled with a majority of two thirds of the valid votes, whereby this majority must correspond to at least one third of those entitled to vote. A referendum can only be changed or revoked within two years by a new referendum.

According to a survey by the association Mehr Demokratie e. V. there were 42 referendums at the municipal level by the end of 2011, 26 of which were initiated by the municipal council and 16 were initiated by citizens as a referendum. Citizens 'petitions often fail due to their lack of admissibility, which the municipal council only determines after the complete submission of an application for a referendum with the corresponding number of supporters' signatures about its admissibility. In 1997, the citizenship of Rostock declared the application of a referendum to carry out a referendum on ecological waste disposal as inadmissible, as did an application in 2011 to preserve an avenue in Warnemünde and an application against the Darwineum in Rostock Zoo .

Direct elections

In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, both mayors and district administrators have been directly elected since 1999 . The assignment of direct elections to the instruments of direct democracy is, however, controversial and is largely rejected by legal and political scientists.

Debate about the design of the people's legislation and reform plans

Positions and initiatives of the parties

In May 2012, the Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen parliamentary group introduced a bill to the state parliament, which provided for the required number of signatures and the quorum for referendums and referendums to be halved. Specifically, the number of signatures for a referendum should be reduced to 60,000; for a successful referendum, only a sixth should approve the proposal of an initiative instead of a third of those eligible to vote. After a first reading in parliament, the draft law is still being discussed by the committee (as of February 2014). Another concern is the introduction of participatory budgeting at the municipal level.

At the beginning of 2014, the SPD parliamentary group, which ruled in a grand coalition with the CDU , campaigned for lower hurdles in referendums and referendums. For referendums, the number of supporters' signatures should be reduced, for referendums, lower approval quorums make sense. In their election programs for the state elections in 2011 , neither the SPD nor the CDU had made any statements about the direct democratic procedures at the state and local levels.

The left also calls in its program to lower the hurdles and simplify the regulations. It should also be possible to dissolve the state parliament by referendum . Another goal is the introduction of participatory budgeting.

The FDP is generally in favor of improving the citizens' opportunities for political participation, without making concrete statements about lower hurdles for referendums and referendums. At the municipal level, the FDP also advocates the introduction of participatory budgeting.

Evaluation of the direct democratic procedures in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania

The association Mehr Demokratie e. V. rates the hurdles for people's legislation in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania as very high. In practice it has been shown that the people's legislation in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania remains a “right on paper”, since the hurdles can hardly be overcome. In contrast to the high quorums in the referendum, the hurdles for a popular initiative are rather low compared to other federal states.

Planned constitutional amendment

In December 2014 it became known that the governing parties SPD and CDU had agreed with the Greens and the Left on a reform of the state constitution and a lowering of the quorums for referendums and referendums. According to this, the quorum of signatures for a referendum should no longer be specified in absolute numbers, but should be calculated relative to the population. For a successful referendum, the signatures of 7.5 percent of those entitled to vote should then be required. This would currently mean a reduction from 120,000 to around 100,000. A five-month period for collecting the signatures is to be introduced for the referendum. So far, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania was the only federal state in which there was no collection period. The quorum of approval for a referendum should in future be 25 percent of those entitled to vote, instead of the previous 33 percent.

The constitutional amendment may not be passed until 2016, shortly before or after the next state election . Rapid implementation is not in the interests of the grand coalition, as a lower approval quorum in the likely referendum against the judicial reform would play into the hands of opponents of the reform. The reform and the closure of several local courts are a central project of the state government. Since a rejection of the referendum in the state parliament is considered certain, it is very likely that there will be the first referendum based on a referendum. A dispute over the question of when the constitutional amendment should be adopted could cause the compromise to fail.

literature

  • Tobias Franke-Polz: Direct Democracy in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania , in: Direct Democracy in the German Lands , edited by Andreas Kost, VS Verlag, Wiesbaden 2005, ISBN 3-531-14251-8 , pp. 148-162.
  • Hubert Meyer: Kommunalpolitik in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern , in: Kommunalpolitik in der deutschen Länder , edited by Andreas Kost, Hans-Georg Wehling, Westdeutscher Verlag, Wiesbaden 2003, pp. 166–167.
  • Nicolai Pahne, Frank Rehmet: Citizens' petition report Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania 2015 , published by Mehr Demokratie e. V., Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Regional Association, Rostock 2015

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Constitution of the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania of May 23, 1993 (Verf MV)
  2. ↑ Law for the implementation of initiatives from the people, referendums and referendums in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (referendum law) VaG MV of January 31, 1994
  3. ↑ Ordinance for the implementation of the law for the implementation of initiatives from the people, referendums and referendums in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania From February 1, 1994 §§ 9-18 of the Implementation Ordinance (VoBegGDV MV)
  4. ↑ List of previous popular initiatives, referendums and referendums on the Landtag website (PDF 17.4 kB), from March 9, 2016, accessed on April 11, 2016.
  5. ↑ VaG MV , § 12 (1).
  6. ↑ Information on the state constitution on the state portal Mecklenburg-Vorpommern ( Memento from February 20, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  7. ↑ a b Direct democracy in MV will be easier ( Memento from February 20, 2016 in the Internet Archive ), ndr.de, January 27, 2016.
  8. ^ Website of the initiators of the referendum ( Memento from September 4, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  9. ↑ Judges 'Association launches citizens' initiative on controversial court reform, focus.de, September 19, 2015.
  10. ↑ Now things are getting serious for Minister Kuder , svz.de, August 14, 2014
  11. ↑ Minister takes judges curb , nnn.de, August 28, 2014
  12. ↑ Around 150,000 signatures against judicial reform ( memento of December 27, 2014 in the Internet Archive ), ndr.de, December 9, 2014.
  13. ↑ press release. 1/2015. State Returning Officer Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, February 24, 2015, accessed on February 24, 2015 .
  14. ↑ press release. 14/2015. State Returning Officer Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, September 16, 2015, accessed on September 19, 2015 .
  15. ↑ Explanations of the methodology and terms of the referendum at the regional returning officer
  16. ^ Result of the referendum on the constitution of the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania on June 12, 1994 at the state returning officer ( memento of March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
  17. ^ A b c d Tobias Franke-Polz: Direct Democracy in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania , in: Direct Democracy in the German States , ed. v. Andreas Kost, Wiesbaden 2005, p. 150.
  18. ^ Municipal constitution for the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (municipal constitution - KV MV) of July 13, 2011
  19. ↑ Roland Geitmann: Guide to Citizens 'Requests and Citizens' Decisions , Mehr Demokratie eV, 10/2005, p. 2.
  20. ↑ Hubert Meyer: Kommunalpolitik in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern , in: Kommunalpolitik in der deutschen Länder , ed. v. Andreas Kost, Hans-Georg Wehling, Wiesbaden 2003, p. 167.
  21. ↑ Draft law of the Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen parliamentary group: Draft of a law to amend the municipal constitution for the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania , Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania state parliament, printed matter 6/1231, October 10, 2012
  22. ↑ Information on the referendum on the website of the Hanseatic City of Rostock ; Head off for the linden trees ( Memento from February 25, 2011 in the Internet Archive ), Rostocker Journal, February 2, 2011
  23. ↑ Andreas Kost: Direct Democracy at the Local Level , in: Local politics in the German states , ed. v. Andreas Kost u. Hans-Georg Wehling, Wiesbaden 2 2010, p. 389.
  24. ^ Greens: Lowering the hurdles for referendums , Schweriner Volkszeitung, May 18, 2012; Bill by the Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen parliamentary group. Draft of a law amending the constitution of the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania , State Parliament Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, 6th electoral period, printed matter 6/732, May 9, 2012
  25. ↑ Overview of the state of the parliamentary process
  26. ^ Election program of Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen for the state elections 2011, p. 133.
  27. ↑ SPD wants to dare a little more democracy ( memento from January 13, 2014 in the Internet Archive ), NDR, January 9, 2014
  28. ^ Election manifesto of the SPD for the state elections 2011; Election program of the CDU ( Memento from April 19, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) for the 2011 state election.
  29. ↑ a b Election program of the left for the state election 2011
  30. ↑ a b Landtag election program 2011 of the FDP ( Memento from March 5, 2016 in the Internet Archive ), p. 42.
  31. ↑ a b Proposals for the reform of the referendum law on the website of the Verein Mehr Demokratie
  32. ↑ a b Stefan Ludmann: Constitutional amendment: Strengthening direct democracy ( Memento from December 28, 2014 in the Internet Archive ), ndr.de, December 18, 2014