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Joint parliamentary group of the CDU/CSU

The CDU and the CSU are two different parties with their own separate nominations. In the German Bundestag they form a joint parliamentary group. Section 10 (1) of the Rules of Procedure of the German Bundestag permits the formation of joint parliamentary groups by parties which, on account of similar political aims, do not compete with each another in any Land.

The CDU and the CSU have common political aims. In elections, the CSU stands for election in Bavaria only, the CDU in all other Länder. Their election results are presented separately by the Federal Returning Officer, but are often counted together in the media. There are no objections to this.

As they are two separate parties, in Bundestag elections each has to get at least 5% of the valid second votes cast in the electoral area – that is in all of Germany – in order to participate in the allocation of seats to Land lists.

In its judgment of 30 July 2024, the Federal Constitutional Court ruled that the restrictive clause pursuant to Section 4 (2), second sentence, number 2 of the Federal Elections Act will continue to apply until amendments are enacted, subject to the condition that political parties that receive less than 5 percent of the valid second votes cast in the electoral area will be excluded from the distribution of seats only if their candidates have secured the most first votes in fewer than three constituencies.

Last update: 21 January 2025