The Greens will decide in June in a final vote on a proposed charter reform. The party leadership cleared the way on Monday. According to the “taz”, the federal board and the party council passed a corresponding draft.
“”Our task is to develop our internal democracy further”” the “taz” reports from the resolution. The goal is to “gain new punch in the political debate on the basis of our democratic principles”. The proposed change contains 17 separate items, each to be voted on individually.
A large portion concerns the conduct of the party congresses. The leadership wants to “reduce the number of items” and make the debates and votes more understandable. It will raise the hurdles for initiating items: a simple member’s proposal will no longer only need 50 signatures. Instead, a threshold of “0.05 % of the party membership” will apply, which amounts to roughly 90 people today.
On the other side, the leadership plans to strengthen base participation with a new instrument: “member councils”. These would act as a debate space, akin to a citizens’ council, where selected members draft action recommendations on controversial topics. Each year, up to one council of 30-60 members could be created, and its conclusions may be put to a vote at a party congress.
In addition, the role of the political executive will be renamed. In the future it will be called “Secretary General”-similar to other parties. The separation of office and mandate will be relaxed: “three” instead of the current “two” members of the federal board may simultaneously serve as parliamentarians.
The party council, an expanded board, will also be re‑formed. Its composition will increasingly reflect power positions: for instance, about two members from state governments, possibly from the federal government, and leading figures from the European Parliament, state parliaments, and local governments. The new charter will not stipulate this composition as a hard requirement but as a target guideline.
Pegah Edalatian, the party’s political executive, told the “taz” that “our committees and leaders are already expected to make strategic decisions. Their interaction should be better coordinated. But we are the Greens. We also want to strengthen our party congresses by bringing decisive debates to the fore and ensuring delegates better understand what matters”.
In the coming months, party members will extensively discuss the merits and drawbacks of the proposals. Starting on 9 June, they will be able to vote, and the result is expected in July. The leadership believes that a simple majority is sufficient for acceptance; therefore, no quorum is required.