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Germany's Left party is struggling to survive just a year before a general election, its leaders said Saturday, after the departure of a former leading member and a subsequent hemorrhage of support.
“There is no doubt that the Left Party is in a dangerous situation that threatens its existence,” the leadership said in its main proposal for the party's next conference in the eastern city of Halle in October.
In the last elections to the lower house of parliament, or Bundestag, in 2021, the Left Party won just 4.9% of the vote, short of the 5% threshold normally required to enter the chamber. The party was only able to win seats thanks to a special rule that favors small parties that win direct mandates: with three direct mandates, it was allowed to form a faction.
After the party's former grand dame Sarah Wagenknecht left the party and founded her own party, the Sarah Wagenknecht Alliance, the Left Party remained at around 3% support for some time. At the beginning of June, the party had only 2.7% support in the European elections.
Wagenknecht's decision to withdraw from the party came in part after she clashed repeatedly with others in the Left Party over her anti-immigration views.
The party's leadership body in Berlin adopted the proposal regarding the threat to the party's existence. They added that from the party conference and the Bundestag elections in 2025, they want to lead the party on a new path and make it successful again.
Party leadership committees use key motions to make proposals on central issues and the direction of the party. These motions are voted on at party congresses. Thus, the accepted key motion shows how the party as a whole defines its position on particular issues.
The party leadership admitted in its main proposal: “Many who have put their trust in us for a long time and voted for us have the following impression: you are busy with yourselves, that you are not here for us. We accept this criticism.”
The leadership added that the Left Party had failed to effectively put the issue of distribution between the top and bottom of society on the public agenda and to understand the left's dissatisfaction with the ruling centre-left coalition.
Together, they want to turn the crisis into a turning point towards a stronger, more powerful left-wing party. To achieve this, the leadership said, the Left Party needs a strategic reorganization.
In the proposal, the leadership explained why, in their view, there is an “urgent need” for a strong left party on social, immigration and foreign policy.
The party said it opposed the false narrative that made migrants a scapegoat for social cuts and social insecurity.
“Instead, we point to the deeply unequal distribution between the top and the bottom and the real causes of everyday insecurity and the erosion of public services,” they added.
The goal of returning to the Bundestag with a bloc is set to be set in the next Bundestag elections.
It remains unclear whether party leaders Janine Wiesler and Martin Sherdiwan want to run for party leader again at the party convention.
After a poor showing in the European elections, Sherdiwan hinted that he was considering stepping down from his post.
Former faction leaders Gregor Gysi and Dietmar Bartsch called for “structural, political and human renewal.”
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