Left parties limit their parliamentary mandates to twelve years

Left-wing MPs in the Bundestag should relinquish their mandate after three terms. The federal party conference in Chemnitz decided on this term limit in a key motion on Friday evening. The proposal to shorten the time to two electoral terms did not receive a majority.

The motion justifies the time limit with "credibility and anti-establishment: we are here to make a difference in the world with our heart and soul and not to make a career out of it." It was also decided to call on all Left Party MPs to donate part of their parliamentary allowance to the party's social fund. In addition, the elected representatives are required to be transparent about their income and donations.

The key motion entitled "We are the hope" received a large majority of the more than 500 delegates in the final vote. The paper sets out the framework for how the Left Party intends to position itself in the coming years and integrate the tens of thousands of new members who have recently joined. A central goal is the "campaignability" of the party and a strong focus on important issues such as housing, prices and the taxation of the rich. According to the motion, the Left sees itself as an "organizing class party".