Pensioner democracy
Pensioner democracy is a political catchphrase coined by Roman Herzog .
Accordingly, an aging population in Germany would mean that more and more senior citizens and, above all, pensioners would exercise their right to vote , so that they would be overly taken into account in political decisions, especially in pension policy .
Origin of the term
The term was introduced into the pension policy discussion in April 2008 by former Federal President Roman Herzog through the following interview:
“I'm afraid we are just seeing the harbingers of a retirees' democracy: the elderly are getting more and more, and all parties are showing disproportionate consideration for them. In the end, that could mean that the older ones plunder the younger ones. "
The occasion was criticism from senior citizens' associations against the CDU member of the Bundestag Jens Spahn , who wanted to prevent an unscheduled, nominal pension increase, which was planned by the federal government.
Discussion about the term
VdK President Walter Hirrlinger expressed himself annoyed about Herzog's choice of words: he had “absolutely no understanding” that Herzog “pushed emotions up” in this way. Further: "The elderly do not plunder the younger ones, but rather they want to see at least a bit of the upswing so that they do not always have to accept reduced purchasing power."
The word was one of the favorites for the title " Unword of the Year 2008".
In a survey by Infratest dimap for the ARD , 64 percent of the German population disagreed with Herzog's statement that the parties disproportionately consider the elderly at the expense of the younger generation. Only 33 percent of those questioned agreed with Herzog's thesis, which had sparked much discussion. However, the survey also showed that opinions differ depending on age. A majority of 18- to 34-year-olds shared Herzog's criticism of the “excessive influence” of the elderly on politics. The majority of respondents aged 35 and over said no. Among the over 45-year-olds, 70 percent said no to Herzog's thesis.
In relation to the European elections in Germany in 2009 , the CDU-affiliated Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung found that around a third of those eligible to vote were over 60 and that there was also the highest voter turnout there. "The voting behavior in this group had a very positive effect on the overall performance of the Union". Above all, almost half of the women over 60 would vote for the Union.
Web links / literature
- Wolfgang Streeck : Is Germany Threatening Pensioners' Democracy? In: Yearbook of the Max Planck Institute for the Research of Societies 2009/2010. Online (PDF; 408 kB)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Focus: Herzog warns of “pensioner democracy” April 11, 2008
- ^ Spiegel: Herzog warns of “pensioner democracy” April 11, 2008
- ↑ VdK: Criticism of “pensioners' democracy” met with broad rejection April 21, 2008
- ^ Zeit Online: The worst word , accessed on January 7, 2009
- ↑ Pensioners have Union firmly under control , Spiegel Online from July 13, 2009