Left Party gains confidence as German election nears

Last year was a political nightmare for the Left Party: In January 2024, their former parliamentary group leader, Sahra Wagenknecht, founded her own eponymous party, then they saw their European Union representation cut in half to just 2.7%. The 2024 state elections were also a disaster, with the party losing its traditional foothold in eastern Germany. Their only state premier failed to hang on in Thuringia, while the party barely made it into Saxony's state parliament and was kicked out of Brandenburg entirely.

Little wonder that few believed that the Left Party, known as Die Linke in German, would have much success in the upcoming parliamentary elections on February 23.

But the tide seems to be turning. 

Renegade offshoot loses steam

Recent polls suggest the Left Party could clear the 5% hurdle needed to enter the Bundestag as the renegade Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) loses support.

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 steady loss in support.

The duo had only been in office a few weeks when Chancellor Olaf Scholz's governing coalition collapsed, forcing a vote of no confidence that saw him call for an early election. Without their now estranged coalition partner, the neoliberal Free Democrats (FDP), Scholz's center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the environmentalist Green Party were unable to form a majority in the Bundestag.

Fierce criticism of the SPD and Greens

In the wake of the government collapse last November, the Left Party quickly presented an election program focused on social and economic policy, which was adopted at its party conference in January. They accuse the SPD and Greens of having done nothing to combat the mounting affordability crisis in recent years.

"People realize that the Left Party is credibly fighting for social issues, that no one else is doing it, that we are the only ones taking on the rich," party co-leader Ines Schwerdtner told DW.

To reduce poverty, she has proposed abolishing the value-added tax on basic foodstuffs, hygiene products and public transport tickets. Currently, up to 19% VAT is charged on these items — almost a fifth of what consumers pay at the register.

Wealth tax to combat inequality

To finance these plans, the party wants to increase state revenue with a graduated wealth tax: 1% for people in possession of €1 million, 5% from €50 million and 12% from €1 billion.

"Millions of hard-working people have created this extreme wealth," party co-leader Jan van Aken told conference-goers, adding there was enough money to go around, it is just being misallocated. "We have to get it back so that we can all live well again." 

To allow Germany to borrow more again, the Left Party also wants to reform the debt brake enshrined in the constitution. Loosened from the constraints of the debt break, the party would spend an additional €200 billion on the modernization of crumbling infrastructure. Financially ailing companies would also receive state support in exchange for long-term job guarantees and collective agreements, in addition to agreeing to keep their locations in Germany.

Clear stance against the far right

The party regards the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) as its main opponent in the Bundestag elections.

"Not an inch for the fascists," van Aken said at the recent convention in Berlin. "We on the left always oppose attempts to divide our society and incitement against migrants."

A former United Nations biological weapons inspector, van Aken also addressed Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine as a violation of international law.

"We on the left are against all war and stand for peace," he said but made a distinction between militarization and other potential routes to end the conflict. "We need more diplomacy in Ukraine, not more weapons. Without freedom and democracy in Ukraine, there will be no peace."

Elders to the rescue  

Even if the Left Party fails to clear the 5% hurdle, it may still enter parliament thanks to Mission Silberlocke ("Mission Silver Locks"). Launched by party patriarch Gregor Gysi with two other prominent Left Party elders, the campaign seizes on a detail of German electoral law, by which a party may still enter parliament if it wins at least three direct mandates. The party benefited from this rule in the 2021 Bundestag elections.

Gysi, who celebrated his 77th birthday in January, is once again running for a direct mandate. The Berliner has won his constituency eight times already and has no doubts about defending his mandate. 

Gysi also hopes the party will gain at least 5% of the vote. Co-chair Ines Schwerdtner is also confident, despite the loss of many voters to the BSW following Wagenknecht's departure. "We want to win back all the voters who once voted for the Left Party," Schwerdtner told DW.

After years of internal disputes, the party is once again united and fighting for the same electoral goal. And Gysi has a personal goal, too: If voters choose him once again, he would likely be the longest-serving member of the Bundestag — racking up 32 years, save for a brief interruption. His dream is to open the first session of the next German Bundestag with a speech as the Alterspräsident (president by seniority).

This article was originally published in German.