Oral hearing in the proceedings “Election of a Vice-President of the German Bundestag” on 10 November 2021 at 10:00 a.m.

Press Release No. 72/2021 of 11 August 2021

Reference: 2 BvE 2/20

The Second Senate of the Federal Constitutional Court will conduct an oral hearing on

Wednesday, 10 November 2021, 10:00 a.m.
in the courtroom of the Federal Constitutional Court, Schlossbezirk 3, Karlsruhe

regarding an application in Organstreit proceedings (proceedings relating to disputes between constitutional organs) filed by a member of the German Bundestag who belongs to the parliamentary group of the party Alternative für Deutschland (AfD). The proceedings are directed against the President of the Bundestag and concern the question of whether Art. 38(1) second sentence of the Basic Law (Grundgesetz – GG) grants individual members of Parliament (MPs) the right to nominate their own candidate for the position of Bundestag Vice-President – at least from the second round of voting onwards – and to have this nomination voted upon.

Background:
Over the course of the current electoral term, the AfD parliamentary group had already made several unsuccessful attempts to have one of its members elected as Vice-President of the German Bundestag. In the session of the Bundestag on 26 September 2019, a further MP nominated by the AfD parliamentary group failed to obtain the necessary majority in the first round of voting. The election of a Bundestag Vice-President was again placed on the agenda for the session on 7 November 2019 – this time for a second round of voting. The AfD parliamentary group nominated the same MP as before. The applicant notified the respondent in writing that he wished to nominate another MP from his parliamentary group for the election. In the session of the Bundestag, the Vice-President chairing the session rejected the applicant’s motion as inadmissible on the grounds that individual MPs are not entitled to nominate candidates for the election of a Vice-President.
In the applicant’s view, the rejection of his nomination violated his right to the equal powers of participation enjoyed by all MPs pursuant to Art. 38(1) second sentence GG. He argues that the constitutional status of MPs includes the right to participate in elections held by the Bundestag itself. This includes the right to nominate candidates, which is not and cannot be restricted by the Rules of Procedure of the Bundestag. The respondent, on the other hand, contends that there is no basis in parliamentary law for claiming that every MP has a right to nominate candidates. He argues that the composition of the Presidium is part of the internal organisation of the Bundestag and as such must be handled by the parliamentary groups. Accordingly, only the parliamentary groups are entitled to nominate candidates.

The outline of the oral hearing can be accessed here.

Information for the general public

Persons wishing to attend the oral hearing or the pronouncement of the judgment must register at the following address: 

Mr Stadtler
Postfach 1771, 76006 Karlsruhe, Germany
Phone: +49 721 9101 400
Fax: +49 721 9101 461
Email: besucherdienst@bundesverfassungsgericht.de

When registering, please provide your name, first name, date of birth, and contact data (a phone or fax number or an email address). Please refer to the Federal Constitutional Court’s data protection statement for information on the protection of personal data (Arts. 13 and 14 GDPR) in the context of visitor registration. The data protection statement is available on the Federal Constitutional Court’s website under the heading “Data protection”. You may also request a paper copy of the data protection statement.

Seats will be allocated in the order in which registrations are received.

Accreditation requirements for journalists

Accreditation

The accreditation process opens upon publication of this press release and closes at 12:00 noon on Thursday, 4 November 2021. After this deadline, accreditation is no longer possible.

Please use the form provided for accreditation requests. The form must be filled in completely and signed. If applicable, a copy of the valid press card must be enclosed; this is only necessary for the first accreditation during the card’s term of validity. The accreditation request may be sent by email to presse@bundesverfassungsgericht.de or by fax to +49 721 9101 461. Accreditation requests sent to any other email addresses or fax numbers of the Court will not be considered.

Members of the Justizpressekonferenz Karlsruhe e.V. may send their accreditation requests to the Federal Constitutional Court’s press office without having to use the form.

Accreditation requests will be considered in the order in which they are received. If requests are received simultaneously, accreditation is awarded by drawing lots. A few days after the expiry of the deadline, the Federal Constitutional Court will notify the applicants by email whether their accreditation was successful.

Please refer to the Federal Constitutional Court’s data protection statement for information on the protection of personal data (Arts. 13 and 14 GDPR) in the context of the accreditation procedure. The data protection statement is available on the Federal Constitutional Court’s website under the heading “Data protection”. You may also request a paper copy of the data protection statement.

Availability and allocation of seats

Due to current measures to curb the spread of COVID-19, only a total of 15 seats are available for media representatives in the press galleries inside and outside the courtroom. Seats are allocated in the order in which requests are received. Media representatives who cannot obtain a seat in the press gallery may follow the oral hearing or the pronouncement of the judgment from the press room or – if seats are available – from the courtroom itself.

There will be audio transmission from the courtroom to the press room. The press room is equipped with 18 desks. A limited number of power outlets for laptops is available. The Court cannot guarantee the availability of mobile phone signal and data networks.

Additional rules in the courtroom

Making phone calls, tweeting or sending other messages, accessing digital data and any other use of the Internet within or from the courtroom is not permitted. Allelectronic devices that can be used for these purposes – in particular mobile phones, laptop computers and tablet computers – may not be used in the courtroom. Media representatives may obtain permission to use computers in offline mode in the press gallery if it is ensured that the devices are not used for audio or image recording or for data transmission.

Taking photos and filming; pooling

1. Taking photos and recording audio or video is permitted until the presiding Justice has established the presence of the parties to the proceedings. After that, photographers and camera teams must leave the courtroom level (including the foyer outside the courtroom and the press gallery). They may wait in the reception room on the first floor. Pronouncements of judgments may be recorded in their entirety.

2. Media pools will be set up for taking photos and filming in the courtroom. Two television teams (a public and a private television station with a maximum of three cameras each) and six photographers (four agency photographers and two freelance photographers) will be admitted to the building. The pool representatives are required to supply their photos and video recordings to other radio and television stations and to photo agencies upon request.

Willingness to be a pool representative must be explicitly stated in the accreditation request. Pool representatives are appointed according to the order in which the accreditation requests are received. If requests are received simultaneously, lots are drawn. The television stations, agencies and photographers that serve as pool representatives are free in determining the members of their teams.

3. When taking photographs and filming in the courtroom, it must be ensured that the Justices have an unobstructed view in all directions. Entering the area behind the Justices’ bench is not permitted. Instructions to this effect by court staff must be complied with. Taking photos and filming is only permitted with low-noise devices and without a flash.

4. After the end of the oral hearing or the pronouncement of the judgment and during the lunch break, interviewing, filming, or photographing the parties to the proceedings or other individuals is permitted only in the reception room on the first floor and the foyer on the ground floor.

Vehicles of technicians, radio and television crews

Only a limited number of parking spaces is available for SNG vehicles, editing vehicles and OB vans. If accredited journalists require parking space, this must be indicated along with the accreditation request on the form provided. Parking spaces are allocated in the order in which requests are received. The following information is required for the allocation of parking space: number plate, vehicle type, make, dimensions (length x width x height in metres), weight and, if applicable, whether access to a power outlet at the court is needed.

The names, dates of birth, and ID card numbers of the technicians, as well as the vehicle data, may be submitted after the accreditation request. The form provided must be used. This also applies to media organisations represented by members of the Justizpressekonferenz. The form must be sent by email to presse@bundesverfassungsgericht.de or by fax to +49 (721) 9101 461 no later than 12:00 noon on Monday, 8 November 2021.

Media representatives with allocated parking space may set up their equipment on the day before the oral hearing between 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., and on the day of the oral hearing or the pronouncement of the judgment between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m.

Setting up studios

The press office must be consulted in advance if media representatives wish to set up a studio. Studios may be set up in the reception room on the first floor and in the entrance hall on the ground floor.

This information is based on § 17a of the Federal Constitutional Court Act in conjunction with the supplementary provisions laid down by the Federal Constitutional Court.