2024 has been a tumultuous year for the Left Party: their former parliamentary group leader, Sahra Wagenknecht, founded her own party in January 2024, which led to a halving of their representation in the European Union to 2.7%. The state elections in 2024 were also a setback, with the party losing its traditional base in eastern Germany. They failed to retain their only state premier position in Thuringia and barely entered Saxony’s state parliament, while being completely ousted from Brandenburg.
Few predicted that the Left Party, known as Die Linke in German, would have much success in the parliamentary elections on February 23.
Splinter Party Loses Momentum
In the final weeks of the campaign, it seemed unlikely that the Left Party would surpass the 5% threshold needed to enter the Bundestag as the breakaway Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance waned in popularity.
The shift is likely due to a change in party leadership last October, with Jan van Aken and Ines Schwerdtner replacing Janine Wissler and Martin Schirdewan who were unable to halt the party’s decline in support.
The duo had only been in office a few weeks when Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s governing coalition collapsed, forcing an early election. Without their coalition partner, the neoliberal Free Democrats, Scholz’s center-left Social Democratic Party and the Green Party were unable to form a majority in the Bundestag.
Criticism of the SPD and Greens
Following the government collapse in November, the Left Party swiftly presented an election program focused on social and economic policy. They accuse the SPD and Greens of having failed to address the mounting affordability crisis over the past few years.
“People realize that the Left Party is credibly fighting for social issues, that nobody else is doing it, that we are the only ones taking on the rich,”
party co-leader Ines Schwerdtner told DW.
She has proposed the abolition of value-added tax on basic goods to reduce poverty. A graduated wealth tax is also proposed to finance their plans:
1% for those with €1 million, 5% for those with €50 million, and 12% for those with €1 billion in assets.
Fighting Inequality
“Millions of hard-working people have created this extreme wealth,”
party co-leader Jan van Aken told conference-goers, adding that the wealth is simply misallocated. “We need to get it back so that we can all live well again.”
To fund their plans, the Left Party proposes modifying the constitutional debt brake, allowing for an additional €200 billion to be spent on modernizing outdated infrastructure. Financially impaired companies would also receive state aid in exchange for job guarantees and collective bargaining agreements, as well as commitments to remain in Germany.
Firm Stance Against the Far-Right
The party identifies the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) as their primary opponent in the Bundestag elections.
“Not an inch for the fascists,” van Aken declared at a recent convention in Berlin. “We on the left always oppose attempts to divide our society and incitement against migrants.”
Van Aken, a former United Nations biological weapons inspector, also addressed Russia’s war against Ukraine as a breach of international law.
“We on the left oppose all war and stand for peace,” he said, distinguishing between militarization and other potential conflict resolution methods. “We need more diplomacy in Ukraine, not more weapons. Without freedom and democracy in Ukraine, there will be no peace.”
This article was originally published in German. It was first published on January 18, 2025, and later updated to reflect recent developments.
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