A new advisory board is set to convene for the first time next Tuesday, designed to provide the Green Party leadership with counsel on issues specifically concerning eastern Germany. The board, comprising 17 external advisors alongside party representatives, aims to bolster the party’s standing in the region following recent electoral setbacks.
Among the appointed advisors is historian Ilko-Sascha Kowalczuk, whose research focuses on the history of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) and political scientist Judith Enders, a co-founder of the “Third Generation East Germany” initiative. Further demonstrating a breadth of expertise, the board also includes veteran Green Party figures such as former Bundestag Vice-President Katrin Göring-Eckardt and Marianne Birthler, the former Federal Commissioner for the Stasi Records.
Representatives from state-level positions are also included, such as Franziska Schubert, the parliamentary group leader in Saxony and Susan Sziborra-Seidlitz, the Green Party leader in Saxony-Anhalt. Stefan Fassbinder, the sole Green mayor in eastern Germany from Greifswald and DDR-era human rights activist Grit Friedrichs, also join the panel. Representing a younger generation are Tammo Westphal (a board member of Green Youth) and Lukas Mosler (member of the Saxony state party executive and 2021 Bundestag candidate in Bautzen).
The formation of the advisory board follows a series of challenges for the Green Party in eastern Germany, including recent losses of representation in the state parliaments of Brandenburg and Thuringia and exit from government in Saxony. Further electoral tests loom in Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in 2026. The party leadership announced countermeasures earlier this year, with the establishment of this advisory board representing an initial step.
According to Heiko Knopf, the Green Party’s deputy chairman and key figure in shaping the board’s composition, there was considerable interest in serving. He emphasized the importance of incorporating a diverse range of perspectives – including volunteers, full-time professionals, internal and external voices and individuals with varying degrees of connection.
Alongside Knopf, the board includes party leader Felix Banaszak, notable as the sole member without direct experience of eastern Germany and further strengthens its expertise with specialists such as Michael Kellner, Carla Kniestedt, Tobias Kremkau, Luna Möbius and Nicole Peter.