Local electoral law (North Rhine-Westphalia)
The local elections in North Rhine-Westphalia is regulated by several provisions, including the Law on local country in North Rhine-Westphalia (municipal Act) and the municipal order . In addition, there is the law to strengthen local democracy from 2013.
In the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, according to Section 1 (1) of the Law on Local Elections in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia (Local Election Law) elected representatives (district assemblies, city and municipal councils) and the highest administrative officials (district administrators and mayors) in local elections, with the runoff election abolished in 2007, but again in 2011 was introduced.
Size of local parliaments
The size of the local parliaments depends on the number of inhabitants in the municipality and on the election result. Around half of the representatives in electoral districts are elected by majority vote and the other half (at least) via reserve lists of the parties. If a party wins more seats in the constituencies than it would be entitled to based on the proportion of its votes, it retains these seats ( overhang seats ) and the other parties receive compensation seats . The parliaments are expanding accordingly.
The municipalities and districts can reduce the number of representatives to be elected by two, four, six, eight or ten, half of them in electoral districts, by statute no later than 45 months after the start of the electoral period. The number of 20 representatives must not be undercut. Until 2016, it was only possible to reduce the number by a maximum of six representatives.
| City or municipality | Circles | ||||
| Residents | Representative | Constituencies | Residents | Representative | Constituencies |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| up to 5,000 | 20th | 10 | up to 200,000 | 48 | 24 |
| 5,001- 8,000 | 26th | 13 | |||
| 8.001- 15.000 | 32 | 16 | |||
| 15.001- 30.000 | 38 | 19th | |||
| 30,001- 50,000 | 44 | 22nd | |||
| 50,001-100,000 | 50 | 25th | |||
| 100,001-250,000 | 58 | 29 | |||
| 250,001-400,000 | 66 | 33 | 200,001-300,000 | 54 | 27 |
| 300,001-400,000 | 60 | 30th | |||
| 400,001-550,000 | 74 | 37 | 400,001-500,000 | 66 | 33 |
| more than 500,000 | 72 | 36 | |||
| 550,001-700,000 | 82 | 41 | |||
| more than 700,000 | 90 | 45 | |||
election day
From 2009 on, the day on which the German members of the European Parliament are elected, the local parliaments in North Rhine-Westphalia should also be elected. On September 19, 2008, Hannelore Kraft , Sylvia Löhrmann (Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen) and another 83 members of the North Rhine-Westphalia state parliament lodged a complaint against this regulation before the North Rhine-Westphalian constitutional court because they wanted to achieve a merger with the 2009 federal election . The court agreed with the applicants. In the grounds of the judgment, it stated that an overlap of two terms of office of a maximum of two and a half months was justifiable. The Minister of the Interior Ingo Wolf (FDP) thereupon set August 30, 2009 as election day, so that the complainant's aim was not met despite the successful complaint.
In 2014, the local elections and the European elections were held once on the same day. The next local elections in North Rhine-Westphalia will take place on September 13, 2020 because the previous five-year electoral period will be extended once for one year. This ensures that the election of the mayors, district administrators and mayors can take place on the same day. The electoral period for the representatives elected in 2020 therefore begins on November 1, 2020.
Web links
- Legal basis in NRW: General local elections and direct elections
- Local Election Act NRW
- Local election regulations NRW
- District order (KrO NRW)
- Law to strengthen local democracy with changes
Individual evidence
- ^ Decision of the NRW Constitutional Court
- ↑ NRW reintroduces runoff voting . In: WAZ , April 15, 2012
- ↑ KWahlG NRW § 3, para. 3
- ↑ KWahlG NRW § 3, para. 2, sentence 2
- ↑ KWahlG NRW § 3, para. 2, sentence 1, a
- ↑ KWahlG NRW § 3, para. 2, sentence 1, b
- ↑ KWahlG NRW § 14, para. 1
- ↑ Constitutional Court : Press releases: Regulatory review application against amalgamation of local and European elections 2009 ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , September 22, 2008, accessed January 15, 2009
- ↑ Article 5 of the law to strengthen local democracy of April 9, 2013 (GV. NRW. P. 194), amended by the law amending the local election law and amending local constitutional regulations of October 1, 2013, Article 2a
