The Bundestag is the German federal parliament and the lower of two federal chambers,opposed to the upper chamber,the Bundesrat. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people,comparable to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom or the United States House of Representatives. The Bundestag was established by Title III of the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany in 1949 as one of the legislative bodies of Germany and thus it is the historical successor to the earlier Reichstag.
Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany,comprising most of the historical Duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Schleswig. Its capital city is Kiel;other notable cities are Lübeck and Flensburg. It covers an area of 15,763 km2 (6,086 sq mi),making it the 5th smallest German federal state by area. Historically,the name can also refer to a larger region,containing both present-day Schleswig-Holstein and the former South Jutland County in Denmark.
Southern Schleswig is the southern half of the former Duchy of Schleswig in Germany on the Jutland Peninsula. The geographical area today covers the large area between the Eider river in the south and the Flensburg Fjord in the north,where it borders Denmark. Northern Schleswig,congruent with the former South Jutland County,forms the southernmost part of Denmark. The area belonged to the Crown of Denmark until Prussia and Austria declared war on Denmark in 1864. Denmark wanted to give away the German-speaking Holsten and set the new border at the small river Ejderen. Prussian chancellor Otto von Bismarck concluded that this justified a war,and even proclaimed it a "holy war". He also turned to the Emperor of Austria,Franz Joseph I of Austria for help. A similar war in 1848 had gone poorly for the Prussians. With Prussia's modern weapons and the help from both the Austrians and General Moltke,the Danish army was destroyed or forced to make a disorderly retreat. The Prussian-Danish border was then moved from the Elbe up in Jutland to the Kongeåen creek.
Flensburg is an independent town in the far north of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. After Kiel and Lübeck,it is the third-largest town in Schleswig-Holstein.
The Danish ethnic minority in Southern Schleswig,Germany,has existed by this name since 1920,when the Schleswig Plebiscite split German-ruled Schleswig into two parts:Northern Schleswig with a Danish majority and a German minority was united with Denmark,while Southern Schleswig remained a part of Germany and had a German majority and Danish and Frisian minority populations. Their historic roots go back to the beginning of Danish settlement after the emigration of the Angles. One of the most common names they use to describe themselves is danske sydslesvigere.
The South Schleswig Voters' Association is a regionalist political party in Schleswig-Holstein in northern Germany. The party represents the Danish and Frisian minorities of the state.
The Youth in the South Schleswig Voters' Association is a political youth organization in Germany. It is the youth wing of the South Schleswig Voters' Association
The 2005 Schleswig-Holstein state election was held on 20 February 2005 to elect the members of the Landtag of Schleswig-Holstein. The incumbent coalition government of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and The Greens led by Minister-President Heide Simonis was defeated,bringing an end to 17 years of SPD governments in the state.
Peter Harry Carstensen is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). From 2005 to 2012 he was Minister President of the state of Schleswig-Holstein,serving as President of the Bundesrat in 2005/06.
The Schleswig-Holstein Landtag is the state parliament of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. It convenes in the state's capital Kiel and currently consists of 69 members of five parties. The current majority consists of coalition of the Christian Democratic Union and the Greens,supporting the cabinet of Minister President Daniel Günther.
The 2009 Schleswig-Holstein state election was held on 27 September 2009 to elect the members of the Landtag of Schleswig-Holstein. It was held on the same day as the 2009 federal election and the 2009 Brandenburg state election.
The 2012 Schleswig-Holstein state election was held on 6 May 2012 to elect the members of the Landtag of Schleswig-Holstein. The incumbent coalition government of the Christian Democratic Union and Free Democratic Party (FDP) was defeated. Though the CDU remained the largest party,the Social Democratic Party (SPD) negotiated a coalition with The Greens and the South Schleswig Voters' Association (SSW). This was dubbed the "Danish traffic light" or "Namibia coalition". SPD leader Torsten Albig was subsequently elected Minister-President by the Landtag.
Torsten Albig is a German politician from the Social Democratic Party of Germany. From 2012 until 2017 he served as the 13th Minister President of Schleswig-Holstein.
Anke Spoorendonk is a German politician from the South Schleswig Voters' Association (SSW). From 12 June 2012,until 28 June 2017 she was the Minister of Justice,Culture and European Affairs in the state government of Schleswig-Holstein.
Simon Faber is a German politician and was Lord Mayor of Flensburg between January 15,2011 and January 15,2017.
Rasmus Andresen is a German politician of the Alliance 90/The Greens who has been serving as a Member of the European Parliament since 2019.
Ernst Dieter Rossmann is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) who served as a member of the Bundestag from the state of Schleswig-Holstein from 1998 until 2021.
The 2022 Schleswig-Holstein state election was held on 8 May 2022 to elect the 20th Landtag of Schleswig-Holstein. The outgoing government was a coalition of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU),The Greens,and the Free Democratic Party (FDP),led by Minister-President Daniel Günther.
In Germany's federal electoral system,a single party or parliamentary group rarely wins an absolute majority of seats in the Bundestag,and thus coalition governments,rather than single-party governments,are the usually expected outcome of a German election. As German political parties are often associated with particular colors,coalitions are frequently given nicknames based on the colors included. Prominent political parties in Germany are the CDU/CSU (black),the SPD (red),the Greens (green),the Left,the AfD (blue),and the FDP (yellow).
Christian Dirschauer is a German politician. He has been a member of the Landtag of Schleswig-Holstein since 2020,and has been chairman of the South Schleswig Voters' Association since 2021.
