Schleswig-Holstein state election, 2009

State elections were held in Schleswig-Holstein on 27 September 2009, the same day as the German federal elections and the Brandenburg state elections. The elections determined control of the Landtag of Schleswig-Holstein (Schleswig-Holstein's legislature).

It was an early election; after the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Social Democratic Party (SPD) grand coalition broke apart in Summer 2009, Minister-President Peter Harry Carstensen (CDU) provoked early elections by intentionally losing a vote of confidence. After the election, Carstensen and his party were able to form a coalition with the FDP instead of the SPD.^[1] However, these party have a majority in the Landtag only because of overhang seats for the CDU.

In August 2010 the Constitutional Court of Schlewsig-Holstein judged that the Electoral Law was against the Constitution of Schleswig-Holstein, as the parliament's size was boosted by overhang seats and corresponding neutralizer seats for the other parties far above the 69 seats fixed in the constitution. The Contitutional Court decided that the current Landtag should not be changed, but that a new election must take place latest on 30. September 2012, after a revision of the Electoral Law.^[2]

^a As representation of the Danish Minority in Schleswig-Holstein, South Schleswig Voter Federation does not need to gain a minimum of 5 percent of the votes to obtain seats in the parliament, as all other parties do.

References

• "Endgültiges Ergebnis der Wahl zum Schleswig-Holsteinischen Landtag vom 27. September 2009 (Final results of the Schleswig-Holstein state election from 27 September 2009)" (in German). The state Returning Officer. 2 November 2009. http://www.schleswig-holstein.de/LWL/DE/Landtagswahl/PDF/BekanntmachungEndgueltigeErgebnisse,templateId=raw,property=publicationFile.pdf.