The Party of Democratic Socialism was a left-wing populist political party in Germany active between 1989 and 2007. It was the legal successor to the communist Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED),which ruled the German Democratic Republic as the sole governing party until 1990. From 1990 through to 2005,the PDS had been seen as the left-wing "party of the East". While it achieved minimal support in western Germany,it regularly won 15% to 25% of the vote in the eastern new states of Germany,entering coalition governments with the Social Democratic Party of Germany in the federal states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Berlin.
Gregor Florian Gysi is a German attorney,former president of the Party of the European Left and a prominent politician of The Left political party.
Gesine Lötzsch is a German politician of the left-wing party Die Linke. In 2010,with Klaus Ernst,she was elected president of the party.
Oskar Lafontaine is a German politician. He served as Minister-President of the state of Saarland from 1985 to 1998 and was federal leader of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) from 1995 to 1999. He was the lead candidate for the SPD in the 1990 German federal election,but lost by a wide margin. He served as Minister of Finance under Chancellor Gerhard Schröder after the SPD's victory in the 1998 federal election,but resigned from both the ministry and Bundestag less than six months later,positioning himself as a popular opponent of Schröder's policies in the tabloid press.
Sahra Wagenknecht is a German politician,economist,author,and publicist. She has been a member of the Bundestag since 2009,where she represented The Left until 2023. From 2015 to 2019,she served as that party's parliamentary co-chair. With a small team of allies,Wagenknecht left the party on 23 October 2023 to found her own party in 2024,Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht,to contest elections onwards.
Federal elections were held in Germany on 18 September 2005 to elect the members of the 16th Bundestag. The snap election was called after the government's defeat in the North Rhine-Westphalia state election,which caused them to intentionally lose a motion of confidence to trigger an early federal election. The outgoing government was a coalition of the centre-left Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and Alliance 90/The Greens,led by federal Chancellor Gerhard Schröder. The election was originally intended for the autumn of 2006.
Katja Kipping is a German politician of The Left party. She was a member of the Bundestag representing Saxony from 2005 to 2021,a federal co-leader of The Left from 2012 to 2021 alongside Bernd Riexinger,and the Senator for Integration,Labour and Social Affairs in the Berlin state government from December 2021 to April 2023.
The Left,commonly referred to as the Left Party,is a democratic socialist political party in Germany. The party was founded in 2007 as the result of the merger of the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) and Labour and Social Justice –The Electoral Alternative. Through the PDS,the party is the direct descendant of the Marxist–Leninist ruling party of former East Germany,the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED). Since October 2024,The Left's co-chairpersons have been Ines Schwerdtner and Jan van Aken. The party holds 28 seats out of 736 in the Bundestag,the federal legislature of Germany,having won 4.9% of votes cast in the 2021 German federal election. Its parliamentary group is the second-smallest of seven in the Bundestag,and is headed by parliamentary co-leaders Heidi Reichinnek and Sören Pellmann.
An indirect presidential election was held in Germany on 30 June 2010 following the resignation of Horst Köhler as president of Germany on 31 May 2010. Christian Wulff,the candidate nominated by the three governing parties,the Christian Democratic Union,the Christian Social Union of Bavaria and the Free Democratic Party,was elected president in the third ballot. His main contender was the candidate of two opposition parties,the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance '90/The Greens,independent human rights activist Joachim Gauck.
Bernd Riexinger is a German politician of the left party Die Linke and member of the Bundestag representing Baden-Württemberg. From 2012 to 2021 he was co-chairperson of The Left alongside Katja Kipping.
Federal elections were held in Germany on 26 September 2021 to elect the members of the 20th Bundestag. State elections in Berlin and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern were also held. Incumbent chancellor Angela Merkel,first elected in 2005,chose not to run again,marking the first time that an incumbent Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany did not seek re-election.
Janine Natalie Wißler,known professionally as Janine Wissler,is a German politician who has been co-chairwoman of The Left and member of the Bundestag for Hesse since 2021. Prior to that,she served as member of the Landtag of Hesse since 2008 and leader of the state parliamentary group since 2009,including as sole leader since 2014,as well as deputy leader of the federal party since 2014. She was one of The Left's lead candidates for the 2021 German federal election,alongside Dietmar Bartsch.
Amira Mohamed Ali is a German politician and member of the Bundestag since 2017. From 12 November 2019 till October 2023,she was the parliamentary co-chairperson of The Left alongside Dietmar Bartsch. In October 2023,she left The Left alongside others like Sahra Wagenknecht to found a new party. Mohamed Ali is the chairwoman of the board of the Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht-Association which was founded to prepare a new party in January 2024.
Thomas Lutze is a German politician who represents the Social Democratic Party of Germany. Previously,he was a member of the Left Party. Thomas Lutze has served as a member of the Bundestag from the state of Saarland from 2009 to 2023,and has represented Berlin since October 2023.
Sören Pellmann is a German politician who represents The Left. Pellmann has served as a member of the Bundestag from Leipzig II in the state of Saxony since 2017. Since 2024,he has been serving as the Leader of The Left Group in the Bundestag,alongside Heidi Reichinnek.
Susanne Hennig-Wellsow is a German politician. She was federal co-chairwoman of The Left from 2021 to 2022 and has served as a member of the Bundestag for Thuringia since 2021. Previously,she was a member of the Landtag of Thuringia from 2004 to 2021,leader of the Thuringia branch of The Left since November 2013,and leader of the state parliamentary group since December 2014.
Steffen Bockhahn is a German politician. He is the Senator for Social Affairs,Youth,Health and Schools of the Hanseatic City of Rostock. From 24 October 2009 to 5 November 2012 he was the state chairman of the Left Party in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania,and from 2009 to 2013 he was a member of the 17th German Bundestag,where he was elected as a direct candidate.
A federal election will be held in Germany on 23 February 2025 to elect the 630 members of the 21st Bundestag. Originally scheduled for 28 September 2025,the elections were brought forward due to the collapse of the governing coalition during the 2024 German government crisis. It is the fourth snap election in the history of post-war Germany after those in 1972,1983 and 2005.
The Left Party parliamentary group in the Bundestag was the parliamentary group of the party Die Linke in the Bundestag from 2005 to 2023. It dissolved in 2023 following the Bundnis Sahra Wagenknecht split.
East Germany 
National People's Army 
National People's Army / Fallschirmjägerbataillon 40
