The Social Democratic Party (SPD), the Greens and the Liberal Democratic Party (FDP) have reached an agreement to reduce the number of members of the Bundestag, the lower house of the German Parliament, from 736 to 630, a change that will take effect after the 2025 general election.
Coalition sources quoted by DPA have informed of this agreement, which modifies the first draft of the reform presented at the end of January and which contemplated the reduction to 598 seats.
The new proposal will be voted in Parliament on Thursday or Friday and is expected to be approved with the majority of the government parties.
The Bundestag was expanded to 736 seats after the 2021 general election. This was the highest figure so far and was due offsets to avoid »orphan constituencies» in which a first candidate is not elected directly by direct vote.
In the elections, a party list is also voted, so that the final result is a mixture of direct election of candidates and through lists of candidates respecting the proportionality of the vote at the national level.
The number of constituencies will remain at 299, but 331 mandates will be allocated through the lists of the federal states, instead of the 299 originally planned.
The aim is to minimize the number of deputies who win a constituency with the first vote and fail to enter the Bundestag.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
