Elections to the German Bundestag

Each constituency is divided into polling districts for elections. The division is determined by the municipality. No polling district should have more than 2,500 residents. In each polling district, the municipality designates a polling place or polling station where voters can cast their ballots.

If they meet the specified conditions, Germans who live outside the Federal Republic of Germany are also eligible to vote if

• they had a domicile or were otherwise permanently resident in the Federal Republic of Germany no more than 25 years ago for an uninterrupted period of at least three months after reaching the age of 14; or if
• they are for other reasons personally and directly familiar with the political circumstances in the Federal Republic of Germany and are affected by them

(section 12 (2) of the Federal Electoral Act).

This includes German citizens employed abroad, German cross-border commuters, and German citizens living abroad who are significantly involved in German politics and society through their activity in associations, parties or other organisations and can demonstrate their involvement.

The place of their last residence in Germany is the responsible authority. If the person in question was never registered as a resident of Germany, the municipality with which he or she is most closely associated is responsible.

If Germans abroad wish to vote in the Bundestag elections, they should submit a written application to be entered in the electoral register of the responsible municipality as soon as possible. This application must be received at least 21 days before the election. Eligible voters who had a domicile or were otherwise permanently resident in Germany no more than 25 years ago for an uninterrupted period of at least three months after reaching the age of 14 also have the option of submitting their application by fax or email.

All Germans abroad who are eligible to vote and are entered in the electoral register may vote from abroad by postal ballot. The postal ballot should be sent as early as possible so that it is received by the responsible authority no later than 18:00 on election day.

Voting is usually done by placing one’s official ballot paper in a ballot box at a polling station, but it is also possible to vote by postal ballot. The voter's notification sent to every eligible voter also includes an application form for a polling card to vote by postal ballot. With this polling card, voters may cast their ballot before election day at the responsible municipal authority, on election day at a different polling station in their constituency than the one indicated in the voter's notification (for example, at an accessible polling station) or they may vote by postal ballot.

Voters may request polling cards until 15:00 on the Friday before the election and in exceptional situations (such as sudden illness) until 15:00 on election day. Polling cards may be requested from the municipality in writing, in person or via fax or email, but not by telephone. If an online request is submitted to send voting documents to an address other than the voter's residence, the responsible authority also sends notification to the voter's residence to confirm that no misuse is involved.

To vote by postal ballot, voters must fill out the ballot paper, seal it in the envelope and send it in the red postal voting envelope together with the polling card and the signed statutory declaration in lieu of an oath. Postal ballots sent in Germany via the postal service provider officially announced before the election do not require postage.

The polling card for postal voting must be requested on time and the postal ballot must be sent off as soon as possible to ensure that it arrives at the responsible authority no later than 18:00 on election day. The voter bears the risk of any delays in postal delivery. Postal ballots that arrive too late are invalid.

German citizens as defined in Article 116 (1) of the Basic Law who are at least 18 years old on election day and who are not excluded from the right to vote or to stand for election are eligible for election.

Anyone who stands for election needs a certificate of eligibility for election. These certificates are issued by the responsible municipal authority.

The Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community is responsible for issuing certificates of eligibility for Germans who do not have a domicile or are otherwise not permanently resident in Germany. In this case, it is necessary to apply for a certificate of eligibility for election from the diplomatic or consular representation of the Federal Republic of Germany responsible for the candidate’s place of residence abroad; to apply, the candidate must present the necessary documents (section 34 (7) sentence 2 of the Federal Electoral Code (Bundeswahlordnung, BWO).

Only political parties may submit federal state lists of candidates (section 27 of the Federal Electoral Act).  The order in which candidates are listed is decided in a secret vote by an assembly of party members or delegates.

Parties must submit their federal state lists of candidates in writing to the responsible federal state returning officer no later than 69 days before the election (section 19 of the Federal Electoral Act). Federal state lists of parties which have not been continuously represented, on the basis of their own nominations, by at least five representatives in the German Bundestag or in the parliament of a federal state since the last election must bear the personal and handwritten signatures of 0.1 per cent of the eligible voters in the federal state, but not more than 2,000 eligible voters (section 27 (1) sentence 3 of the Federal Electoral Act).

A party may submit only one federal state list in each federal state. A candidate may only be nominated in one federal state and only in one list in that federal state. A candidate may not be nominated as an individual candidate at the same time.

The federal state electoral committee regularly decides on the 58th day before the election whether to approve the federal state lists of candidates (section 28 (1) of the Federal Electoral Act).

It is possible to challenge decisions and measures taken in electoral proceedings within two months of election day. The German Bundestag is responsible for the scrutiny of elections; its Committee for the Scrutiny of Elections rules on appeals.

Decisions of the Bundestag may be appealed by petition to the Federal Constitutional Court. Election scrutiny proceedings examine the validity of the election and the violation of individual rights.