The Left Party, which ranked first in Berlin’s state election, needs at least two coalition partners to form a government, but it faced opposition from Josef Schuster, president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany. Schuster urged the other parties not to begin coalition negotiations with the Left Party.
At the center of Schuster’s criticism was the Left Party’s solidarity with pro-Palestinian protesters who held demonstrations against the Israeli government. Schuster accused the party of using antisemitic language and claimed that this line had been crossed many times during the election campaign.
Schuster argued that joining a coalition led by the Left Party would encourage the continued normalization of hatred toward Jews. He said Left Party officials had repeatedly and unequivocally rejected accusations of antisemitism.
Left Party defended its criticism of Gaza policy
Elif Eralp, the Left Party’s candidate for Berlin state premier, supported Berlin’s Palestinian community during the election campaign. Eralp also strongly condemned what she described as war crimes by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in Gaza.
Eralp said a state government led by the Left Party would end repressive police practices targeting peaceful pro-Palestinian protests in the capital. Saying that party leaders had distanced themselves from several isolated incidents following the accusations, Eralp said the Left Party opposed all forms of racism.
Eralp said she had taken part throughout her career in projects combating antisemitism and stated during a television debate that they supported protecting Jewish life. Eralp also said that the lives of Muslims and Palestinians must be protected.
Left Party won 25.3 percent but failed to secure a majority
The Left Party moved toward a historic first-place finish in Berlin’s state election. Eralp said the results could pave the way for a person from an immigrant background to become head of government in the capital for the first time.
According to the latest projection, the Left Party ranked first with 25.3 percent of the vote. This was more than twice the party’s 12.2 percent result in the 2023 election. Prime Minister Friedrich Merz’s conservative CDU remained at 19 percent, while the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany received 16.3 percent, the Greens 14.4 percent and the Social Democratic Party 12.1 percent.
Despite holding a clear lead, the Left Party failed to secure the majority needed to form a government on its own. Following an election campaign in which it called for changes to CDU policies, the party needs at least two partners to form a government.
Seat distribution to determine coalition arithmetic
The strongest option for the Left Party was a three-way coalition with the Social Democratic Party and the Greens. However, the distribution of seats in the Berlin House of Representatives had not been finalized before the preliminary official results were announced.
The distribution of seats could also change depending on whether the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance clears the 5 percent electoral threshold. The alliance received 4.8 percent in the latest projection.
If the Left Party, the Social Democratic Party and the Greens fail to reach an agreement, the CDU, which came second, could try to form a coalition with the other two parties. If the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance fails to enter parliament, the three parties could have enough seats to form a government.
