2011 State Elections in Germany

[Old Europe]

Hilarious that it didn't happen because of CDU/Green friction like in Hamburg, instead it happened because of friction between CDU and FDP.

[republicanism]

From what I heard my f'ing stupid party is going to do f'ing stupid things again and is ready to join in as a junior partner in a Grand coalition, despite having the best chances to became the strongest party after early elections and for party leader Heiko Maas to become Minister president then (either in a SPD/CDU or a SPD/Left coalition).

Not to late to give up hope, but things sound bad.


Edit: As "Old Europe" pointed out I got the first name of the SPD-Saarland leader wrong.

[Old Europe]

From what I heard my f'ing stupid party is going to do f'ing stupid things again and is ready to join in as a junior partner in a Grand coalition, despite having the best chances to became the strongest party after early elections and for party leader Nils Maas to become Minister president then (either in a SPD/CDU or a SPD/Left coalition).

Not to late to give up hope, but things sound bad.

Is "Nils Maas" a hybrid of Heiko Maas and Nils Schmid?

[Jens]

From what I heard my f'ing stupid party is going to do f'ing stupid things again and is ready to join in as a junior partner in a Grand coalition, despite having the best chances to became the strongest party after early elections and for party leader Heiko Maas to become Minister president then (either in a SPD/CDU or a SPD/Left coalition).

Not to late to give up hope, but things sound bad.


Edit: As "Old Europe" pointed out I got the first name of the SPD-Saarland leader wrong.

Why do SPD insist on killing it self by being junior partner in grand coalitions? I makes very little sense!

[Leftbehind]

I've never understood SPD's comfortableness with getting into bed with CDU (the same would be unthinkable here - but tbf our Conservatives are sociopaths) but then from what I've seen of the SPD, it rivals our Labour for being chock full of neoliberals/centrists, who are probably more comfortable in a centre-right coalition than a centre-left with De Linke.

You seen the same sh**t in Ireland with their Labour surging to second party status to throw it all away on a coalition with what are meant to be their ideological enemies. Beyond belief.

[Sibboleth]

Exaggerated emphasis on stability and/or respectability or something like that, presumably. Fears of a repeat of what happened in Hesse a few years ago, which would be irrational, of course. Factional stuff as well? I suppose there might be additional personal issues in Saarland as presumably a lot of Die Linke's politicians will be ex-SPD types who left with Lafontaine.

[Old Europe]

From what I've heard, prime minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer (CDU) didn't dissolve the coalition until she had made sure through some backroom talks that the SPD would be willing to form a new government with her.

Without that deal she probably would have tried to continue the CDU/FDP/Green coalition. Which makes sense because "Jamaica" certainly seemed salvageable at this point. The termination of the government really came abrupt.

[republicanism]

Exaggerated emphasis on stability and/or respectability or something like that, presumably.

You nailed it, basically.

The party hasn't mentally recovered from the major knockout that the 2009 election was. Since then the party is unbelievable unassertive and afraid to take any risk, even more so than before.

In case of the Saarland, it helps that the CDU there is probably the most left wing in Germany with traditionally strong roots in the catholic working class.