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The Sainte-Laguë/ Schepers method is used to convert the votes into seats, in a two-stage process with each stage involving two calculations.
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Two stages, each involving two calculations However, the method by which the votes are converted into seats has changed. Germany’s electoral system, a combination of "first-past-the-post" election of constituency candidates (first votes) and proportional representation on the basis of votes for the parties’ Land lists (second votes), has been retained. In 2013, the Bundestag introduced a new method of distributing the seats between the parties, to comply with requirements set by the Federal Constitutional Court. Each of these parties is allocated seats in the Bundestag in proportion with the number of votes it has received. The 598 seats are distributed among the parties that have gained more than five percent of the second votes or at least three constituency seats. In some circumstances, Parliament’s size may increase during the process of allocating the seats due to what are known as "overhang seats" and additional "balance seats". And it is this second vote that determines the relative strengths of the parties represented in the Bundestag.Īt least 598 Members of the German Bundestag are elected in this way. The second vote is cast for a party list. The first vote, allowing voters to elect their local representatives to the Bundestag, decides which candidates are sent to Parliament from the constituencies. Accordingly, each voter casts two votes in the elections to the German Bundestag. Half of the Members of the Bundestag are elected directly from Germany’s 299 constituencies, the other half via party lists in Germany’s sixteen Länder (states). "Secret" means that each individual must be able to vote without others learning which party or candidate he or she has chosen to support. "Equal" means that each vote cast carries the same weight with respect to the composition of the Bundestag.
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"Free" means that no pressure of any kind may be exerted on voters. The elections are "direct" because citizens vote for their representatives directly without the mediation of delegates to an electoral college. "General" means that all German citizens are able to vote once they have reached the age of 18. The Basic Law stipulates that its Members be elected in "general, direct, free, equal and secret elections". As a rule, the people determine the composition of the Bundestag every four years.