Hans-Jürgen Papier, the former president of Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court, has spoken out in favor of lowering the electoral threshold for Bundestag elections from five to three percent. In an interview with the Tagesspiegel, he said the current five percent hurdle is no longer appropriate.
Papier argued that in the 2025 federal election, around 6.8 million of the 49.6 million valid second votes went to parties that won less than five percent. These votes, he said, “fell under the table,” rendering nearly every seventh second vote worthless. He stressed that a vital democracy depends on the ability of new parties to emerge.
The five percent threshold makes it difficult to found and sustain a party, leading to the risk of political petrification, Papier added. A three percent threshold would ensure more citizens are represented in parliament and strengthen trust in democracy.
Source: www.spiegel.de
