Re-election with 73.3 percent
Steinmeier remains Federal President
02/13/2022, 2:31 p.m
His re-election was considered certain, now it’s done: The Federal Assembly sends Federal President Steinmeier into his second term with 73.3 percent of the valid votes. The other candidates have no chance.
Frank-Walter Steinmeier remains German President. The Federal Assembly confirmed the 66-year-old in office with a large majority in the first ballot. Steinmeier, who was nominated by the traffic light parties SPD, Greens and FDP and by the CDU/CSU opposition, received around 73 percent approval. He received 1045 out of 1425 valid votes and accepted the election immediately after the announcement of the result. Twelve votes were invalid. Steinmeier is only the fifth Federal President to serve a second term. As expected, the candidates from the other parties had no chance. The doctor Gerhard Trabert, who was nominated by the left, received 96 votes, the CDU politician and economist Max Otte, nominated by the AfD, received 140 votes. 58 delegates voted for the physicist Stefanie Gebauer, who was sent into the race by the Free Voters.
The SPD, Greens, FDP and CDU/CSU together made up 1223 of the 1472 members of the Federal Assembly – far more than the absolute majority required in the first ballot. In the run-up, it was eagerly awaited how many delegates would vote for Otte. The AfD alone provided 151 voters. The candidature of the CDU politician was extremely controversial in advance. The CDU therefore withdrew his membership rights and initiated a party exclusion procedure.
SPD leader Klingbeil: “A reconciler”
SPD chairman Lars Klingbeil said he assumed that Steinmeier would become more involved in social controversies in a possible second term. “I think he will do that more clearly in his second term because the country is polarized,” said Klingbeil on the fringes of the Federal Assembly in response to a question. He referred to the corona pandemic and the tense foreign policy situation. “He will become more involved in socio-political debates. He will give the country more orientation,” predicted Klingbeil.
Klingbeil praised Steinmeier as a reconciler: “He can listen to others, he can bring people with different opinions to the table and he can build these bridges. And the country needs that.” Green party leader Britta Haßelmann praised Steinmeier, who was once SPD foreign minister, as a good expert on the world foreign policy situation.
CSU boss Söder: “Sovereign in difficult times”
CSU boss Markus Söder also certified the Federal President’s sovereignty in difficult times. “I believe that his experience, his sovereignty in these confused times of fake news and constant back and forth are very beneficial,” said Söder on the sidelines of the Federal Assembly. “I think that a Federal President shouldn’t always have his hand on the pulse of the population, so to speak, but should perhaps sometimes contribute a bit to peace and sovereignty.” Steinmeier has done that very well so far. The Bavarian Prime Minister emphasized that Germany owes a lot to Steinmeier.
The Federal Assembly is the largest parliamentary body in Germany. Its only task is to elect the head of state every five years. The assembly consists of the members of the German Bundestag and an equal number of members who delegate the 16 state parliaments. Ex-Chancellor Angela Merkel, who received long applause before the election, was also there on Sunday. The list of voters also included celebrities such as national coach Hansi Flick, footballer Leon Goretzka or musician Roland Kaiser and scientists such as astronaut Alexander Gerst, virologist Christian Drosten and Biontech co-founder and vaccine developer Özlem Türeci.
Since the Bundestag currently has 736 members, the Federal Assembly consisted of 1,472 electors – more than ever before. Because of the corona pandemic, this time they did not meet in the plenary hall of the Reichstag building, but in the neighboring Paul-Löbe-Haus, where there is more space. More than 70 replacements came into play – partly because delegates with positive corona tests were absent.