Federal Constitutional Court - Press office -

Press release no. 30/2011 of 20 April 2011

Order of 12 April 2011 – 2 BvC 12/10 –

Complaint lodged by the federal chairman of DIE PARTEI
concerning the scrutiny of an election is inadmissible


The Second Senate of the Federal Constitutional Court dismissed as 
inadmissible the complaint challenging the validity of the 2009 
Bundestag election which had been lodged by the federal chairman of DIE 
PARTEI in his own name. 

The Party for Employment, Rule of Law, Animal Protection, Furtherance of 
the Elites and Direct Democratic Initiative (Die Partei für Arbeit, 
Rechtsstaat, Tierschutz, Elitenförderung und Basisdemokratische 
Initiative – DIE PARTEI) had not been recognised as a party by the 
Federal Electoral Committee and had therefore not been admitted to the 
2009 Bundestag election. The objection challenging the validity of the 
federal election raised for this reason by DIE PARTEI, represented by 
its federal chairman, was rejected by the Bundestag. 

The complaint lodged by DIE PARTEI’s federal chairman which was directed 
against the resolution of the Bundestag is inadmissible because he is 
not entitled to lodge such a complaint. Pursuant to § 48.1 of the 
Federal Constitutional Court Act (Bundesverfassungsgerichtsgesetz – 
BVerfGG), a person entitled to vote may only lodge a complaint 
concerning the scrutiny of an election if an objection lodged by him or 
her has been rejected by the Bundestag. The clear and unambiguous 
wording of the provision requires that the complainant and the person 
raising the objection be identical; this requirement has not been 
complied with because the federal chairman lodged the complaint in his 
own name, whereas in the preceding objection procedure, he only acted as 
the representative of DIE PARTEI, which raised the objection. An 
extending interpretation of the provision is not required. The provision 
keeps within the boundaries of the fundamental concept of what a 
complaint concerning the scrutiny of an election is. Apart from this, 
every group of voters can ensure that the relief sought by the objection 
may become the subject matter of a complaint by just one of its members 
raising the objection also in his or her own name. 


This press release is also available in the original german version.