Political system of North Rhine-Westphalia
The political system of North Rhine-Westphalia is based on the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany and the constitution for the State of North Rhine-Westphalia .
In the federal system of the Federal Republic of Germany, the state of North Rhine-Westphalia is a partially sovereign , parliamentary-ruled member state that is organized according to the principles of a republican , social and democratic constitutional state . The executive is headed by the Prime Minister , who also represents the country internally and externally as head of state . The legislature lies with the state parliament and, in the case of a referendum, with the citizens entitled to vote. The state constitutional jurisdiction is exercised by the constitutional court for the state of North Rhine-Westphalia .
North Rhine-Westphalia is by far the most populous German state and is economically a focal point of the Federal Republic, it therefore exerts considerable influence on federal politics . For several decades, state politics was dominated by the SPD . On June 27, 2017, a black-yellow coalition of the CDU and FDP elected Armin Laschet to the office of Prime Minister and thus head of a new state government ( Laschet cabinet ). His governing coalition has a narrow absolute majority of 100 of the total of 199 seats in the 17th state parliament (since 2017) .
Constitution
The constitution for the state of North Rhine-Westphalia came into force on July 11, 1950. Since it was created after the Basic Law , it does not have its own catalog of basic rights, but is based on the basic rights anchored in the Basic Law ; some fundamental rights are merely characterized a little more precisely. The state parliament adopted the constitution with 110 votes to 97, and in a referendum on June 18, 1950, 3.62 million people were in favor of the constitution and 2.24 million were against. The main point of contention at the time was whether the constitution should give precedence to denominational schools or community schools. The state constitution was supplemented by state-specific legal guarantees and state objective provisions. These include provisions on the labor and social order or more detailed provisions in the field of cultural and social affairs. Constitutional amendments require a two-thirds majority in the state parliament. Important constitutional changes in 1968 were the primacy of the community school over the denominational school, in 1978 a basic right to data protection and the introduction of the state objective of protecting the natural basis of life (1985).
State organs
The sovereignty rests with the people . The structure and tasks of the individual state bodies are determined according to the principle of separation of functions. However, the people only vote directly for the state parliament and the municipal representatives and organs. The state parliament elects the prime minister, controls the government and elects the judges at the constitutional court. Because the prime minister is elected by the state parliament, it is seldom in practice that the state government cannot rely on a secure parliamentary majority in the performance of its tasks. Bills from the state government are therefore overwhelmingly approved in the state parliament. The constitution provides for elements of direct democracy in the legislative process, but they do not play a role in practice. Therefore, the system of entanglement of powers dominates the principle of strict separation of powers in the state structure .
Head of state
The head of state of North Rhine-Westphalia is the prime minister . Armin Laschet ( CDU ) has been the incumbent since June 27, 2017 . He represents the country internally and externally, appoints and dismisses ministers and civil servants , signs laws and international treaties and awards regional medals . In contrast to the representative and neutral office of the Federal President , the Prime Minister also holds the power of the state executive in his hands. Therefore, the office of Prime Minister is that of a Head of State.
legislative branch
The legislature is predominantly exercised by the state parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia . As a rule, he is responsible for state legislation. The state parliament has at least 181 members who are usually elected every five years by eligible voters (Germans over 17 years of age with main residence in the state) according to a system of personalized proportional representation. The state parliament is a working parliament ; most of the parliamentary work takes place in the committees, not in plenary . The actual number of MPs in the state parliament can differ from the minimum number: Since the state elections in 2017 , the number of members has been 199. As a rule, the members of the state parliament are professional politicians. At the beginning of an electoral period , the deputies elect the Presidium and the Council of Elders and fill the committees.
Bills can be presented to the state parliament from within, by the state government or by means of a referendum. Around three quarters of the bills come from the state government and around a quarter from the state parliament. The state parliament decides on all bills. Referendums do not play a significant role in practice. So far, only one popular initiative supported by the then CDU opposition in connection with the nationwide introduction of the cooperative school in 1978 has been successful, so that the SPD government at the time changed its school policy. Since 2002, the quorum for a referendum has been 8 percent of the electorate. If the state parliament does not follow the referendum, there is a referendum , in which a majority of at least 15 percent of those entitled to vote must agree. The state government can submit its own bills to the electorate for a referendum. The state parliament must, however, have rejected the government's identical bill beforehand. If the electorate accepts the proposal, the state government can dissolve the state parliament and thus bring about new elections. If the electorate rejects the proposal, however, the state government must resign and the state parliament elects a new government. The state parliament can also dissolve itself according to Article 35 of the state constitution . While the legislative tasks have been decreasing for decades due to federal competencies and the expansion of EU powers, the state parliament members are increasingly looking after local and regional interests vis-à-vis the state administration.
The state parliament has extensive control and influence over the state government. The state parliament decides on the state budget and has to approve state treaties of the state government. The state parliament elects the prime minister from among its members and can replace him at any time with a constructive vote of no confidence , so that the state parliament has considerable influence on the executive. Its power is limited in relation to constitutional jurisdiction. The state parliament elects the constitutional judges. However, since their term of office is ten years, a newly elected state parliament can almost never redefine the judges immediately. The delegation of the representatives to the Federal Assembly , one of the participation possibilities of the federal states in addition to the representation in the Federal Council, follows the relative proportions of the parties represented in parliament.
The state election of May 14, 2017 led to the following result:
| Political party | (Valid) second votes | Proportion of [%] | Seats | Proportion of [%] | Seat allocation graphic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CDU | 2,797,084 | 33.0 | 72 | 36.2 | |
| SPD | 2,649,513 | 31.2 | 69 | 34.7 |
|
| FDP | 1.065.209 | 12.6 | 28 | 14.1 | |
| AfD | 624,552 | 7.4 | 16 | 8.0 | |
| GREEN | 539.059 | 6.4 | 14th | 7.0 | |
| Others | 811,956 | 9.6 | - | - | |
| total | 8,487,373 | 100.0 | 199 | 100 |
Judiciary
The judiciary is in the hands of independent courts ( see: List of Courts of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia ). Their organization and their rights are largely regulated nationwide. In their decisions, the judges are only bound by the applicable laws and are thus free. The Ministry of Justice exercises as part of the executive branch influence, act as far as the courts as authorities and be in ownership of the country and beyond in the judge selection of such courts and in the design of other organs of the administration of justice .
Constitutional disputes take place before the Constitutional Court for the State of North Rhine-Westphalia in Münster . The state parliament elects all seven constitutional judges for a ten-year term of office, so as a rule cannot re-appoint these electoral members at the beginning of a legislative period. The constitutional court can be called upon by the organs of the legislative and executive branches but not, for example, by the citizens with reference to the violation of the fundamental rights guaranteed in the constitution. The Constitutional Court decides, in particular, on complaints in the electoral review process , on ministerial charges, on the interpretation of the state constitution on the basis of disputes between constitutional bodies such as the state parliament or the state government about their rights and obligations, and at the request of the state government or a third of the legal membership of the state parliament on the compatibility of state laws with the constitution.
executive
The executive power is exercised by the state government , which is composed of the prime minister and the state ministers , and the state administration. The lower levels of the multi-level state administration are in part exercised by organs of the municipalities, to which the Basic Law of the Federal Republic (Art. 28) and the State Constitution (Art. 78) guarantee the right to local self-administration.
State government
The state government is the highest executive body of the state and represents the state externally, especially at the federal level . To this end, the state government concludes state treaties and sends government members to the Federal Council . The state government consists of the Prime Minister (since 2017 Armin Laschet , CDU ) and the state ministers. The Landtag elects one of its members as Prime Minister without debate.
The Prime Minister has the authority to issue guidelines and appoints and dismisses his state ministers at his own discretion. In practice, however, these competencies are limited by the formation of government coalitions , and the government's policies and the composition of the ministries reflect the balance of power of the parties in the state parliament that support the government coalition. The state ministers also manage their departments independently. Overall, however, the prime minister is seen as the dominant figure in the country's political system.
The parliamentary support of the government by a majority in the state parliament means that the state government has considerable influence in the legislative process through its right to introduce bills into the state parliament. As described above, on the other hand, the state parliament has extensive influence and control possibilities of the government, not least the possibility of replacing the prime minister and thus the government as a whole with a constructive vote of no confidence . The state government, in turn, can submit its bills to the people in a referendum, which they have introduced to the state parliament, but rejected by it. If the people approve the proposal, the government can dissolve parliament and call for new elections . If the citizens reject the proposal, the state government must resign and the state parliament elect a new prime minister. In addition to these options, the Prime Minister or the State Ministers can resign at any time. The term of office of the Prime Minister normally ends when a newly elected state parliament meets for the first time. With the end of the term of office of the Prime Minister, the term of office of the state ministers also ends.
Almost all areas and authorities of the state administration are directly subordinate to the state government, which is itself the highest state authority .
State administration
organization
The direct state administration, which is predominantly assigned to executive power, is structured in several stages. It consists of the highest state authorities and the subordinate state authorities: the state higher authorities, the state middle authorities and the lower state authorities.
| level | Examples |
|---|---|
| Supreme state authorities | State government ( Prime Minister and State Ministries ), State Audit Office |
| Upper state authorities | Authorities responsible nationwide: State Office of Criminal Investigation , State Office for Central Police Services (LZPD), State Office for Nature, Environment and Consumer Protection, Chamber of Agriculture , data center of the financial administration , etc. |
| State funding authority | Authorities responsible mostly only for parts of the country: district governments , regional finance offices |
| Lower state authorities | Mainly local authorities: landscape associations as the lower state enforcement authority, tax offices , district police authorities , school offices , etc. |
In addition, there are state companies as companies operating on the free market according to economic principles, which are at the same time part of the direct state administration. Examples of this are the Materials Testing Office of North Rhine-Westphalia and the State Office for Road Construction North Rhine-Westphalia . Other institutions such as the state archive or the state media agency in North Rhine-Westphalia are assigned to the highest and middle administrative authorities. The organs of the administration of justice (courts, public prosecutor's offices , penal system ) have an independent, predominantly uniformly regulated organization in accordance with their constitutional position, which is only fully subordinate to the Ministry of Justice in administrative terms. The structure of the legal administration is also multi-level.
Supreme state authorities
State Ministries
The state government has divided its official business into business areas. In addition to the State Chancellery of North Rhine-Westphalia , which primarily supports the Prime Minister and coordinates government work, the State Government has set up the following ministries, each headed by a minister:
State Audit Office
The North Rhine-Westphalia State Audit Office is an independent supreme state authority. Its members are elected by the state parliament. He appraises the state finances and is removed from the direct influence of the government due to his position as the highest state authority. In the exercise of its activities, it is also not subordinate to control by the State Parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia, but, as an independent body of financial control, is only subject to the law. The state audit offices are subordinate to it. The State Audit Office is therefore not clearly assigned to the executive, legislative or judicial branches.
Higher regional authorities
Higher state authorities are institutions that are directly subordinate to the state ministries and whose area of responsibility applies to the entire state. Examples are the State Office for Salaries and Supply , the State Commissioner for Measures and the State Criminal Police Office in North Rhine-Westphalia , which is subordinate to the Ministry of the Interior.
State agencies
The best known middle authorities are the district governments. The country is divided into five administrative districts :
| No. | Administrative district | Population (December 31, 2019) | Seat of the district government | Situation map |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | Arnsberg | 3,580,568 | Arnsberg |
  |
| 7th | Detmold | 2,055,724 | Detmold | |
| 1 | Dusseldorf | 5,207,457 | Dusseldorf | |
| 3 | Cologne | 4,478,847 | Cologne | |
| 5 | Muenster | 2,624,625 | Muenster |
The administrative districts, which are run by the regional presidents, act as state resource authorities between the ministerial level and the lower state authorities as well as the municipalities. Important tasks are municipal and school supervision as well as regional planning and development . Discussions about a reform of the state resource authorities and the dissolution of some or all administrative districts, including a reform of the landscape associations , have so far been fruitless. The two regional tax offices in Münster and Cologne are further state resource authorities .
Lower state authorities
At the level of the lower state authorities, the organs of local self-government such as district administrators , mayors or the landscape associations participate in the state administration. According to the law on the organization of the state administration - state organization law , tasks of the lower state administration can be assigned to these municipal bodies (see organ lending ). For example, the district administrator is regularly head of the state district police authority. Due to their efficiency, the landscape associations can also take on tasks such as enforcement of measures .
Local self-government
The local self-government is in North Rhine-Westphalia, of the 30 counties and cities region (Aachen) and their 374 municipalities belonging (region belonging) municipalities and cities , 23 county-level cities and settled in the district governments five regional councils perceived. The relevant basis is the municipal code for the state of North Rhine-Westphalia . The two landscape associations in North Rhine-Westphalia are of particular importance in the cultural and social area . In addition to the regional associations , there are other municipal associations such as the Ruhr Regional Association or the Lippe Regional Association , which perform special tasks in the area of local self-government. The right to local self-government is approved by the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany (Art. 28) and the State Constitution (Art. 78). At the same time, organs of local self-government take on tasks in the area of the lower state administration assigned to them by the state government.
Municipal agencies
The municipalities of the state each have a council (city or municipal council ) as well as a mayor, who is also head of the local administration after the abolition of dual leadership according to the North German council constitution . In the independent cities, the mayor bears the title of Lord Mayor . The districts have a district council, as well as a district administrator, who, like the mayors, is also head of administration of the district authorities. The special case of the Aachen city region has a similar organization with a city region day and the city region council.
The composition of the municipal representations is redefined every five years by the North Rhine-Westphalian voters (EU citizens over 16 with main residence in North Rhine-Westphalia). The most recent local elections took place on May 25, 2014 . Due to the law to strengthen local democracy , the electoral term of the representatives elected in 2014 ends immediately before the beginning of the electoral periods of the 2020 representatives.
About the district administrators or the city council in the city region of Aachen , the mayors or mayors and the composition of the representatives in the districts (district council) and in the city region of Aachen (city region council), in the district communities (council) and the independent cities ( City council) the voter determines directly, through those of the two landscape assemblies for the Rhineland and Westphalia, the association day for the regional association Ruhr , and the five regional councils only indirectly. The terms of office of the district administrators, the city council and the mayor had meanwhile been extended to six years, which came into effect in the 2009 local elections. In future, it will again be a regular five years. There are transitional regulations to synchronize with the election of the representatives from 2020.
Local area reforms
Between 1967 and 1975 the state parliament carried out an extensive administrative reform: The number of municipalities fell from 2,365 to 396, that of the districts from 57 to 31 and that of the independent cities from 38 to 23. The most recent reform concerned the dissolution of the Aachen district in Year 2009 with simultaneous founding of the Aachen city region .
See also: District reforms in North Rhine-Westphalia until 1990 , list of all municipalities in North Rhine-Westphalia A – E , F – K , L – R and S – Z
Communities
The country consists of 396 politically independent cities and municipalities. 23 cities are independent cities , 373 municipalities are district or regional. The country has 29 major cities , seven of which are districts. The smallest municipality in the country is Dahlem (4215 inhabitants) in the district of Euskirchen .
Counties and urban districts
The following is a list of the local authorities, districts and cities (the respective license plates in brackets):
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Regional associations
The two regional associations of Rhineland and Westphalia-Lippe are higher municipal associations to which the districts and municipalities have come together. The regional association ordinance of North Rhine-Westphalia forms its legal basis. The highest body is the landscape assembly, which is formed by indirect election . The financial endowment is provided by an allocation of the districts and independent cities . They take on tasks in the cultural and social area that go beyond the capabilities of other municipal associations, and on the level of the lower state administration they take on tasks such as the implementation of measures .
Other municipal associations
The municipalities are involved in many other municipal associations. The Ruhr Regional Association , for example, is important for regional planning, regional economic development, the maintenance and development of green spaces and other tasks in the Ruhr area . The state association Lippe goes back to the integration negotiations between the state of Lippe and North Rhine-Westphalia. In addition to the regional association of Westphalia-Lippe, it performs cultural and social tasks and manages a large part of the Lippe state assets for the Lippe municipalities.
Parties
All major parties are represented by state associations in North Rhine-Westphalia. The major parties remained divided into separate state associations long after the state of North Rhine-Westphalia was formed. The SPD regional association was founded, for example, until 1970, however, the four districts (Middle Rhine, Lower Rhine, Westphalia-Lippe and Western Westphalia) remained until its dissolution in 2001 the National Association superior power centers. The two state associations of the CDU only merged on March 7, 1986 to form a joint CDU state association .
External relations
Due to its partial sovereignty , North Rhine-Westphalia, as a restricted subject under public international law , can conclude international agreements in certain areas defined by constitution . The Prime Minister as head of state signs the contracts and requires the approval of the state parliament. Since November 5, 2007, the country maintains partnership relations with the Republic of Ghana . The contract between the State of North Rhine-Westphalia and the Holy See of March 26, 1984 is a special example of external relations . With amendments and additions to certain regulations, the State and the Holy See confirmed the continued validity of the Concordat between the Free State of Prussia and the Holy See under international law Chair dated June 19, 1929. By confirming the succession under international law , North Rhine-Westphalia also acknowledges that it is the successor state of the Free State of Prussia . Numerous heads of state honored North Rhine-Westphalia with state visits . During state visits abroad, the Prime Minister as head of state of North Rhine-Westphalia is received by an honorary escort .
Together with the federal government, the state government of North Rhine-Westphalia is promoting the expansion of the federal city of Bonn into an international conference venue in the interests of German and North Rhine-Westphalian foreign relations, in particular to develop north-south relations . The extra-territorial UN campus , which opened in 2006 and accommodates a large number of United Nations organizations , was expanded in 2015 to include an extension to the World Conference Center Bonn .
On the basis of Articles 24 to 27 of the Benelux Treaty of June 17, 2008, there are stronger relations with the Benelux countries Belgium , Luxembourg and the Netherlands .
The country in the federal state
Legislative competencies
According to the structural principles laid down in Article 20 of the Basic Law , the Federal Republic of Germany is a federal state in which the federal states are fundamentally involved in the legislative process (see eternity clause ). Article 30 of the Basic Law provides that the exercise of state power is basically a matter for the Länder, unless the Basic Law provides otherwise. The legislative power is divided in Art. 70 ff. Basic Law between federal and state after enumerative principle. The exclusive legislative competence of the federal states essentially comprises cultural and educational policy, the media, state and local administration and the police.
Representation in the Federal Council
Through the Federal Council, the state participates in federal legislation and in matters of the European Union in accordance with its federal tasks in the state organization of Germany . The country has six out of 69 votes and is underrepresented in terms of its population (like all large countries). The members of the state government are the representatives of the state in the Federal Council. In order to perform its federal tasks at the federal level, the state maintains a state representation in Berlin.
Representation in the Federal Assembly
Another possibility for participation is participation in the Federal Assembly , in which the state has a considerable number of members due to its size. The composition of the group of members of the Federal Assembly elected by the state parliament follows the relative strength of the parties in the state parliament . In total, around 20 percent of the members of the Federal Assembly are representatives from North Rhine-Westphalia, if one adds to the members elected by the North Rhine-Westphalia state parliament those members of the German Bundestag who represent a North Rhine-Westphalian constituency or who have a North Rhine-Westphalian state list in the Bundestag were elected.
Representation in the joint committee
After the formation of the government in 2017, Prime Minister Armin Laschet and his deputy Joachim Stamp were appointed as members of the Joint Committee , which has the task of replacing the Bundesrat and the Bundestag in an emergency under Article 53 a of the Basic Law .
Representation in the German Bundestag
North Rhine-Westphalia sends the most MPs to the German Bundestag according to its population . The state is divided into 64 federal electoral districts, each with a direct mandate . In addition, depending on various factors - such as the relative voter turnout compared to the federal states and the number of overhangs - and compensatory mandates (see Bundestag electoral law ) - an equal or greater number of members (in the 19th German Bundestag: 78), who via the state lists of the Parties are elected. In addition to these factors, the relative size of the North Rhine-Westphalian state groups of the parties represented in the Bundestag also naturally depends on the relative proportion of votes in the state. In the three most recent elections to the Bundestag, the parties represented in the Bundestag in North Rhine-Westphalia had the following proportions:
| Bundestag election 2017 | Bundestag election 2013 | Bundestag election 2009 | Graphic first vote majorities for the 2009 Bundestag election |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Political party | Share of second votes | Direct mandates | Share of second votes | Direct mandates | Share of second votes | Direct mandates | |
| CDU | 32.6% | 38 | 39.8% | 37 | 33.1% | 37 |
|
| SPD | 26.0% | 26th | 31.9% | 27 | 28.5% | 27 | |
| FDP | 13.1% | - | 5.2% | - | 14.9% | - | |
| AfD | 9.4% | - | 3.9% | - | - | - | |
| GREEN | 7.6% | - | 8.0% | - | 10.1% | - | |
| THE LEFT | 7.5% | - | 6.1% | - | 8.4% | - | |
| Source: Federal Returning Officer | |||||||
The country in the European Union
Many decisions made by the European institutions have a direct impact on people and organizations in the regions of Europe, including in North Rhine-Westphalia. The interests of the country are represented in the most varied of ways in different organs and committees. The countries are not directly involved in the legislation or the bodies of the European Union . However, according to Art. 50 and 23 Paragraph 2 of the Basic Law , the federal states participate in matters of the European Union via the Federal Council . In the judgment on the Lisbon Treaty , the Federal Constitutional Court warned that the legislative powers of the states and the federal principle of subsidiarity must also be adequately taken into account in the European Union in the future. The work of the Federal Government at the European level and the implementation of European directives in national law must therefore take into account the federal character of Germany . In order to represent the interests of the state at European level, a member of the state government has been responsible for "European affairs" since 1995 (since June 30, 2017: Stephan Holthoff-Pförtner , CDU). The country maintains a national representation in Brussels .
Nineteen MPs from North Rhine-Westphalia were elected to the European Parliament for the 8th electoral term (since 2014): the CDU has eight, the SPD six and Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen two members; AfD , FDP and Die Linke are each represented by one member. Of these parties, however, only the CDU drew up a separate state list for North Rhine-Westphalia, the other parties named entered with federal lists on which the candidates from North Rhine-Westphalia ran together with those from other German states.
In the European Committee of the Regions , North Rhine-Westphalia is represented by two members, since January 26, 2006 by Hans-Josef Vogel (CDU, Mayor of Arnsberg ) as a full member and since June 15, 2015 by Marcel Philipp (CDU, Lord Mayor of Aachen ) as a deputy member.
Partner regions
As part of the regional Weimar Triangle , North Rhine-Westphalia maintains relationships with the partner regions:
A cooperation exists with:
After German reunification in 1990, North Rhine-Westphalia supported the re-established state of Brandenburg in setting up administrative structures and with the deployment of staff.
Cross-border European regions are visible signs of the cooperation of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia on a regional level. The European regions with North Rhine-Westphalian participation include:
State symbols
see main article: Coat of Arms of North Rhine-Westphalia and Flag of North Rhine-Westphalia , Order of Merit of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia
Official state symbols are the coat of arms , the flag and the country awarded by the Order . The three-part coat of arms reflects the spatial composition of the country. For the Rhineland , the silver wavy band on a green background is in the right-hand field as a symbol for the Rhine . In heraldic left field the Westfalen horse represents the part of the country Westphalia . In the tip drawn in at the bottom, the Lippe Rose stands for the Lipperland .
The state flag consists of the colors green, white and red. These are a combination of the provincial colors of the former Prussian provinces of the Rhine Province (green-white) and Westphalia (white-red). The national flag is cross-striped in green, white and red. The state service flag is covered with the state coat of arms.
No state symbol, but an official license plate for the state of North Rhine-Westphalia , are the letters NRW on the state's official vehicles .
Awards
The country awards the following awards:
- Since 1986 the Order of Merit of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia to citizens from all groups of the population for their extraordinary services to the general public in all areas of life,
- Since 1986 the State Prize of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia to personalities who are connected to the State of North Rhine-Westphalia through their career or work, for outstanding cultural or scientific achievements or outstanding achievements in other areas of life,
- since 1957 the sponsorship award of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia for young artists with above-average talents.
Between 1953 and 1968 the land lent
- the Great Art Prize of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia in the fields of painting, sculpture, architecture, music and literature.
The most important private award given in North Rhine-Westphalia is the International Charlemagne Prize in Aachen , which the Board of Directors of the Charlemagne Prize Society awards every year on Ascension Day in a solemn ceremony in the Kaisersaal of Aachen City Hall .
National debt
In 2016, the state debt of North Rhine-Westphalia (in the public and non-public sector, including guarantees ) was 202.72 billion euros. This corresponds to a value of 11,346 euros per inhabitant. In order to reduce its budget deficit, the country has been subject to the debt rule under Article 109.3 of the Basic Law since August 1, 2009 . In the opinion of the Institut der Deutschen Wirtschaft and the Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung , however, the financial planning of North Rhine-Westphalia (as of 2014) did not show that the debt rule will be complied with in 2020 because it has assumed a permanently low interest rate and flat rate so far Assume unrealized under-spending or additional income of 800 million euros annually. The state's stake in Portigon AG posed additional risks for the state budget .
History and political culture
See also: History of North Rhine-Westphalia
After the Second World War, the state of North Rhine-Westphalia was created by the British occupying forces, initially from the Prussian province of Westphalia and the northern part of the Prussian Rhine province . The Land of Lippe was later attached. The United Kingdom wanted - against the initial resistance of France - to combine the industrial center of West Germany, the Ruhr area , with its Westphalian and Rhenish parts in one country in order to keep it as efficient as possible. A parliamentary-democratic system of government developed on the basis of a state constitution, the political culture of which is characterized by the strong characteristics of cooperation culture , social culture, integration culture , civic culture and organizational culture . The democratic tradition of concordance in North Rhine-Westphalia is emphasized .
See also Political Culture in Westphalia until 1933
The state of North Rhine-Westphalia was and is characterized by the agglomerations on the Rhine and Ruhr . The population is concentrated there. Due to the coal and steel industry , the economic heart of the country beat for a long time in the Ruhr area . Other industrial regions such as the area around Bielefeld , the Siegerland or parts of the Bergisches Land contributed to the reputation of North Rhine-Westphalia as a land of industry. A large part of the country nevertheless consists of more rural and agrarian areas and has a comparatively low population density. These include the Eifel , the Münsterland and the Sauerland . In many places, however, industry and commerce have developed considerably here too.
In the Ruhr area, the importance of coal and steel has decreased significantly since the 1960s . Instead, the education and service sectors gained in importance due to continuous structural change . In contrast, elsewhere - for example in the Sauerland - the role of the manufacturing sector increased. These economic changes had significant social and political implications.
The different denominational characteristics of the regions of the country are also significant for history and political culture. Some parts of the country, the former Minden-Ravensberg , Lippe, the Siegerland, the Bergische Land, the Brandenburg Sauerland and parts of the Ruhr area are traditionally Protestant . Large parts of the Rhineland, the Münsterland, the Sauerland or the Paderborner Land and considerable parts of the later Ruhr area, on the other hand, have Catholic roots. With the politicization of Catholicism in the 19th century, this contradiction gained weight for political culture.
Despite strong liberal and conservative strands of tradition in the bourgeoisie , the country was shaped by those political forces that based their programs on dealing with the social question as a result of industrialization and on the experiences of the Kulturkampf . With Karl Marx , Friedrich Engels , Ferdinand Freiligrath and Ferdinand Lassalle , important personalities with early socialist ideas were active in the Rhine Province of the Kingdom of Prussia , which was culturally and politically strongly influenced by France . The political culture of the Rhineland and Westphalia during the Empire and the Weimar Republic was characterized by the coexistence of Catholic and social democratic milieus . The communist milieu split off from the latter during the crisis years of the Weimar Republic .
It is hardly surprising that the Catholic rural and small-town areas of the Rhineland and Westphalia were dominated by the Center Party . After 1945 the non-denominational CDU was able to build on this seamlessly. Even after the turn of the millennium , the larger of the union parties in Münster or Sauerland is the leading political force. It is also not surprising that in some Protestant industrial areas such as the area around Bielefeld, in the Siegerland or in the Sauerland in the Mark region, based on a deeply rooted social-democratic milieu , social democracy has long dominated. The (Catholic) Ruhr area and large parts of the industrial Rhineland were originally by no means a traditional social democratic stronghold. Rather, the Center Party was mostly in the lead there before during the Empire. Social Catholicism in particular had one of its strongest bastions there. Even during the Weimar Republic, there were initial cracks in the "Zentrumsturm", but the party often remained a leading political force. Apart from a few exceptions, the KPD was stronger than the SPD in the left-wing party camp.
After the Second World War, there was a certain restoration of the pre-war party system - also in the metropolitan areas. At first the KPD was of considerable importance, the CDU could inherit the Center Party. For the political culture of the country as a whole, it was of decisive importance that the old electoral ties for various reasons dissolved more quickly in the industrial areas than in other parts of the country. As an appendage of the SED, the KPD quickly lost its legitimacy and was finally banned in 1956. The CDU was unable to keep the workers' voters in the district in the long term. Secularization tendencies also played a role. Against the background of the Second Vatican Council, the Church's ties to a political camp also lost importance. For the first time, before the state elections in 1966 , the Catholic Church no longer made an election recommendation in favor of the CDU.
The consequences of the incipient coal crisis were just as important . The CDU's economic policy did not seem to offer any protection from the threat of unemployment, especially for the miners. Both former KPD and CDU voters therefore increasingly switched to the SPD. This step was particularly easy for the former Union supporters because the Social Democrats had removed old ideological barriers after the Godesberg program . Especially since the 1960s, the area became the “heart chamber of social democracy” (according to Willy Brandt , long-time chairman of the SPD).
In the late 1990s, the economic upheavals and the changing program of the SPD caused renewed change. The proportion of the classic SPD clientele, unionized workers, fell sharply in the North Rhine-Westphalian population. Likewise, these voters were less able to identify with the changed party program. The results of state elections have steadily declined since 1990; in the 1999 local elections, the CDU managed to win elections even in large cities in the Ruhr area. Although the CDU's socio-politically more open attitude towards the urban population contributed to this shift (among other things, it called for Islamic classes and all-day schools in the state election campaign in 2005 ), the decisive factor was the sharp drop in voter turnout. Mainly SPD voters refused to vote.
This long-term development also shaped the formation of a government in the country. From 1958 the smaller parties ( KPD and Zentrum ) were no longer represented in the state parliament and the popular parties together won up to 90% of the votes, with the CDU clearly superior . After it still led an all-party government from 1947 to 1950 (even together with the KPD until 1948), it was clearly the party in charge from 1950, both in a sole government and in a coalition with the center or with the FDP . After a brief socio-liberal interlude from 1956 to 1958, the most important political turning point for the time being came in the 1966 state elections. The SPD gained a relative majority and after a few months finally formed a coalition with the FDP. Since then, the SPD has remained the largest ruling party, but in 1970 and 1975 had to give the relative majority in the state parliament back to the CDU. North Rhine-Westphalia has been a safe SPD home country since 1980. From 1980 to 1995 the SPD ruled with an absolute majority, which was mainly attributed to the then Prime Minister Johannes Rau . He held this office from 1978 to 1998, making him the country's longest-serving Prime Minister. After the SPD lost its absolute majority in 1995, it formed a coalition with Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen , which is becoming increasingly important in state politics and which was confirmed in office in 2000 despite the significant loss of votes by both parties. It was not until the state elections in 2005 that the SPD was clearly defeated. The FDP and CDU formed a coalition government under Jürgen Rüttgers .
For the 2010 state elections , an electoral law was introduced for the first time that provides for two votes per voter, which could lead to a strengthening of smaller parties. The previous CDU / FDP government did not receive a new majority. SPD and Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen formed a minority government under Hannelore Kraft (SPD) , which received an extensive majority in the state parliament in the early elections in 2012. In the 2017 election , the government alliance lost significantly and was replaced by a new edition of the Christian-liberal coalition under Armin Laschet (CDU).
The small parties on the left and right fringes of the political spectrum still have a hard time. North Rhine-Westphalia is one of the countries in which the NPD regularly stayed below the one percent mark in elections.
Supraregional significance of state politics
North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous German state and occupies a correspondingly important position in the federal system of the republic. Around 22 percent of all German voters live in the state, and in the Federal Republic before German reunification in 1990 it was even 30 percent. In the Federal North Rhine-Westphalia has six votes and is therefore under-represented in relation to population size. In the 2013 federal election , 138 of the 631 members in North Rhine-Westphalia were elected; that is around 22 percent of the members of the Bundestag. Due to its size and the associated strength of the regional party structures, politicians from North Rhine-Westphalia traditionally play important roles in their parties.
Especially in the early years of the Federal Republic, federal politics tried to influence politics in the country. In 1950, Federal Chancellor Konrad Adenauer prevented a grand coalition of CDU and SPD aimed at by CDU Prime Minister Karl Arnold , because he considered smooth cooperation between the federal government and the federal state to be necessary. In 1966, the newly formed SPD / FDP coalition pioneered the social-liberal coalition established in the federal government in 1969 ; from 1995 the red-green coalition in the state was a test run for the later same coalition in the federal government. The 2005 state elections ended with a clear victory for the CDU, which together with the FDP provided the government. For the first time since 1966, the SPD was no longer involved in the government. Since this election result meant that the then ruling red-green federal government no longer had a majority of the seats in the Bundesrat, the then SPD chairman Franz Müntefering and the then Federal Chancellor Gerhard Schröder (SPD) announced that they wanted to dissolve the Bundestag and to schedule new elections to the Bundestag for autumn 2005. These new elections led to a change of government in the federal government.
At the end of 2012, under the leadership of North Rhine-Westphalia, the Federal Council overturned the tax agreement signed by the governments of Germany and Switzerland .
Other politically important institutions in the country
In addition to the state capital Düsseldorf , especially its government district , and the administrative headquarters of the district governments, Bonn is characterized by a large number of public institutions. Bonn was the federal capital until 1990 and the seat of government of the Federal Republic of Germany until 1999 . According to the Berlin / Bonn Act, certain federal authorities with their facilities and offices have remained in the Federal City of Bonn or have been settled there as compensation. The Federal Financial Supervisory Authority is just one example. Alongside Berlin, North Rhine-Westphalia is the only state in Germany in which the Federal President , the Federal Council , the Federal Chancellor and the Federal Ministries have offices. With the Hardthöhe , the armed forces of Germany, the Bundeswehr , have their headquarters in Bonn. Since 1996 Bonn has been calling itself “the UN city on the Rhine” because 16 United Nations institutions have moved into the “superfluous” former federal institutions .
See also: UN campus • List of international organizations in Bonn • UN institutions in Bonn
Well-known politicians
literature
- Uwe Andersen (ed.): Local self-government and local politics in North Rhine-Westphalia . Cologne u. a. 1987.
- Christian Dästner : The constitution of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Comment . Cologne 1996.
- Johannes Dietlein : The development of the constitution in North Rhine-Westphalia over the past 25 years . In: Yearbook of Public Law of the Present, New Series . tape 51 , 2003, p. 343-384 .
- Michael Giese: Political control of location policy and administrative reform in NRW . In: INEF report . tape 60 . Duisburg 2002 ( uni-due.de [PDF]).
- State Center for Political Education North Rhine-Westphalia (Hrsg.): North Rhine-Westphalia - a political country studies . Cologne 1984.
- The feat of strength: local government reform in North Rhine-Westphalia . In: Landtag Nordrhein-Westfalen (Hrsg.): Writings of the Landtag Nordrhein-Westfalen . tape 16 . Düsseldorf 2005.
- People and the state in NRW . 1971, ISBN 3-7745-0231-5 .
- NRW Lexicon - politics, society, economy, law, culture . Opladen 1990.
- Wichard Woyke : North Rhine-Westphalia and the European Community . Opladen 1990.
- Karl-Rudolf Korte, Marin Florack, Timo Grunden: Governing in North Rhine-Westphalia . Wiesbaden 2006, ISBN 3-531-14301-8 .
- Ansgar Weißer: The "inner" state founding of North Rhine-Westphalia: Conflicts between the state and self-administration over the development of the state (1945–1953) . In: Research on regional history . tape 68 . Paderborn [u. a.] 2012, ISBN 978-3-506-77331-9 .
Individual evidence
- ^ Andreas Kost: North Rhine-Westphalia. From the land of the retort to the "we feeling" . In: Hans-Georg Wehling (Ed.): The German countries. History, politics, economics . 3rd updated edition. Wiesbaden 2004, ISBN 3-531-43229-X , p. 206 f.
- ^ Announcement of the state government about the representation of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia to the outside world. In: GV. NW. 1960. February 8, 1960, p. 13 , accessed August 21, 2017 .
- ↑ The regional returning officer informs: Final result for North Rhine-Westphalia. The regional returning officer of North Rhine-Westphalia, accessed on August 20, 2017 .
- ↑ a b Act on the Organization of State Administration - State Organization Act. In: GV. NW. 1962 , July 10, 1962, p. 421 , accessed August 20, 2017 .
- ↑ Management on three levels. Ministry of the Interior of North Rhine-Westphalia, accessed on August 20, 2017 .
- ^ Announcement about changes in the business areas of the highest state authorities. In: GV. NRW. 2017. July 13, 2017, p. 699 , accessed August 20, 2017 .
- ^ Position in the state structure. North Rhine-Westphalia State Audit Office, accessed on August 20, 2017 .
- ↑ Law to Strengthen Local Democracy. In: GV. NRW. 2013. April 9, 2013, p. 194 , accessed August 20, 2017 .
- ↑ Region regulations for the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (LVerbO) Announcement of the amendment. In: GV. NW. 1994. July 4, 1994, p. 657 , accessed August 20, 2017 .
- ↑ Timeline 1945–2000. Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung e. V., accessed on August 20, 2017 .
- ^ The Ghana - North Rhine-Westphalia partnership. In: Ghana / North Rhine-Westphalia Portal. State of North Rhine-Westphalia - State Chancellery of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, accessed on August 20, 2017 .
- ^ Act on the contract between the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the Holy See. In: GV. NW. 1984. September 18, 1984, p. 582 , accessed August 20, 2017 .
- ↑ Guido M. Hartmann: New momentum for the "Iron Rhine" freight line. In: The world. February 23, 2013. Retrieved August 20, 2017 .
- ^ The Benelux countries visit North Rhine-Westphalia. In: press release. State of North Rhine-Westphalia - State Chancellery of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, July 18, 2013, accessed on August 20, 2017 .
- ↑ Joint Committee: Chair and members of the Federal Council. Federal Council, accessed on August 20, 2017 .
- ↑ BVerfG, judgment of the Second Senate of June 30, 2009 - 2 BvE 2/08 - Rn. (1-421). In: BVerfGE 123. Bundesverfassungsgericht, pp. 267–437 , accessed on August 21, 2017 .
- ↑ National Representation in Brussels. State of North Rhine-Westphalia - State Chancellery of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, accessed on August 21, 2017 .
- ^ Profiles of members in the CoR: Hans-Josef Vogel, Mayor of the city of Arnsberg. (No longer available online.) European Committee of the Regions, archived from the original on 22 August 2017 ; accessed on August 21, 2017 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Profiles of members in the CoR: Marcel Philipp, Lord Mayor of Aachen. (No longer available online.) European Committee of the Regions, archived from the original on 22 August 2017 ; accessed on August 21, 2017 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Regional Weimar Triangle. State of North Rhine-Westphalia - State Chancellery of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, accessed on August 21, 2017 .
- ↑ Silesia - Lively Partnership. State of North Rhine-Westphalia - State Chancellery of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, accessed on August 21, 2017 .
- ↑ Hauts-de-France: Nord Pas de Calais - Picardy. State of North Rhine-Westphalia - State Chancellery of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, accessed on August 21, 2017 .
- ↑ Africa. (No longer available online.) State of North Rhine-Westphalia - State Chancellery of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, archived from the original on August 22, 2017 ; accessed on August 21, 2017 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Karl Ditt : The development of spatial awareness in Rhineland and Westphalia, in the Ruhr area and in North Rhine-Westphalia during the 19th and 20th centuries: characteristics and competitions . In: Karl Ditt, Klaus Tenfelde (ed.): The Ruhr area in Rhineland and Westphalia. Coexistence and Competition of Space Consciousness in the 19th and 20th Centuries . In: Research on regional history , Volume 57. Verlag Ferdinand Schöningh, Paderborn 2007, ISBN 978-3-506-75748-7 , p. 461
- ↑ Debt in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW): State debt. In: HouseholdSteuerung.de. Andreas Burth, August 16, 2017, accessed on August 21, 2017 .
- ↑ Birgit Marschall: North Rhine-Westphalia misses debt target. In: RP Online. RP Digital GmbH, June 2, 2014, accessed on August 21, 2017 .
- ^ Karl-Rudolf Korte, Martin Florack, Timo Grunden: Regieren in Nordrhein-Westfalen. (PDF; 365 kB) Citizens and the state: attitudes, interests, political participation. (No longer available online.) In: Regierungsforschung.de - The scientific online magazine of the NRW School of Governance. Archived from the original on August 22, 2017 ; accessed on August 21, 2017 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Guido Wärme : "It's terrible, but it works!" The hyphenated state of North Rhine-Westphalia: Comments on history, political culture and identity. (No longer available online.) In: Insights and Perspectives 04/2011. Bavarian State Center for Political Education, January 13, 2012, archived from the original on August 22, 2017 ; accessed on August 21, 2017 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
Web links
- State Center for Political Education North Rhine-Westphalia
- State of North Rhine-Westphalia . In: Uwe Andersen, Wichard Woyke (ed.): Concise dictionary of the political system of the Federal Republic of Germany. 7th, updated edition. Heidelberg: Springer VS 2013
- recht.nrw.de , Service of the Ministry of the Interior of North Rhine-Westphalia
- The cabinet minutes of the state government of North Rhine-Westphalia , online edition at the state archive of North Rhine-Westphalia