Saarland parliament opposes federal changes to 'Democracy Live!' program

The Saar state parliament has voiced strong opposition to the federal government's proposed overhaul of the "Demokratie leben!" (Democracy Live!) program, a key initiative for promoting democracy and combating extremism. Lawmakers from the Social Democratic Party (SPD), which holds an absolute majority in the state parliament, passed a resolution asserting that the program has become "a central element of democracy promotion."

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This program has established itself as a central element of democracy promotion.

According to the resolution, any "weakening of established structures" would send the "wrong signal." The parliamentarians highlighted that the potential discontinuation of federal funding could result in a loss of over 416,000 euros for projects within Saarland. "We want the announced cessation of projects to be reversed. We want political education and extremism prevention to continue at least at the current level," stated Réka Klein of the SPD.

Conversely, Raphael Schäfer of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) pointed to criticisms from the Federal Court of Auditors, which had described "Demokratie leben!" as a "hodgepodge of projects." Schäfer argued that this criticism necessitates a restart of the funding program. The parliament urged Minister President Anke Rehlinger's (SPD) government to actively engage at the federal level to secure reliable and long-term financing for effective democracy promotion initiatives.

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The weakening of established structures is the wrong signal.

The "Demokratie leben!" program, active since 2014, currently allocates approximately 190 million euros annually to support associations and projects nationwide. It funds around 360 "Partnerships for Democracy" and roughly 3,000 projects or initiatives. However, the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs has announced that funding for about 200 projects will expire at the end of the year as the guidelines are revised.

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We want the announced cessation of projects to be reversed. We want political education and extremism prevention to continue at least at the current level.

In a separate vote, the state parliament rejected a proposal by the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party for a "Democracy and Election Law Protection Act." The AfD's bill aimed to change how candidates for mayoral elections are vetted, arguing against "ideological tests" in candidate approval. The SPD and CDU voted against the AfD's proposal, with Klein emphasizing that mayoral candidates must meet official requirements, including upholding the democratic basic order, which should be verified before elections.

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Therefore, a restart of the funding program is necessary.