This is how the Steinmühle voted
On February 19, 2025, the junior elections were held once again at the Steinmühle, this time as part of the early federal elections.
Voter turnout, at 80.2 percent, was slightly below average compared to turnout in previous years, which can be attributed to the high number of students on sick leave and the many students who were abroad. Given these circumstances, however, it is encouraging that voter turnout was still relatively high.
Many thanks to the election workers
This was certainly also due to the great dedication of this year’s election volunteers. Ben Luis Peters, Jannis Bastian, Fabian Gutmann, Andreas Wöhr, Jonathan Eckardt, Baris Tutu, Jan Templer, and Anton Neßler from Dr. Claudia Röder’s Political Science seminar impressed everyone with their motivation, expertise, organizational skills, and their friendly and good-humored demeanor.
Project manager Eva Rink was pleased that the junior elections went off without a hitch. The political science and English teacher was also relieved that the junior elections were able to take place at all this year, which was by no means a given due to the early federal elections and the resulting time constraints. Once again, the project’s sponsor, the nonprofit and nonpartisan association Kumulus e.V. from Berlin, proved itself to be a reliable supporter and organizer of political education (for more information: juniorwahl.de).
The results of the mock elections could hold a few surprises here and there, especially when compared to the results of the actual federal elections or to the overall results of the mock elections from all participating schools in Germany.
CDU Remains the Strongest Party, Followed by the Left Party
At Steinmühle, the CDU emerged as the leading party with 23.9 percent of the vote, just as it had in the last youth election held in conjunction with the European elections.
The result achieved by the Left Party—which was considered the loser in the last election—is striking. This year, the party can certainly be described as another winner, as it not only made significant gains but also became the second-largest party with 21.1 percent of the vote.
The Greens are in third place with 17.8 percent, just ahead of the SPD (16.9 percent).
A nationwide trend is also evident at Steinmühle: Compared to previous junior elections at Steinmühle, the FDP has suffered further losses. While it was still the second-strongest party in the youth elections held as part of the 2021 federal elections, this year it received only 8.2 percent of the vote.
The Sarah Wagenknecht Alliance and the Volt Party received 3.3 percent and 3.0 percent of the vote, respectively, putting them almost neck and neck.
There was no shift to the right
The shift to the right, which is evident not only in Germany but throughout Europe, did not take hold in Steinmühle. The AfD received even fewer votes than in the previous local elections and managed to secure only 1.5 percent of the vote.
In the chart, the following parties were grouped under “Others”: Free Voters (1.2 percent), Animal Protection Party (1.2 percent), Die PARTEI (0.9 percent), MLPD (0.6 percent), and PdH (0.3 percent).
“Panel Discussion Was Helpful”
The results of the first-preference votes are also interesting. Sören Bartol of the SPD emerged as the clear winner, with 40.2 percent of the vote. The attached table shows additional results regarding the district representatives.
Many students noted that the previous panel discussion at the Steinmühle with the candidates running directly for the German Bundestag was very helpful in determining their voting decisions and left a lasting impression.
Democracy is fun
In addition, numerous students and faculty members once again spoke positively about the junior elections, a sentiment that was also reflected in the enthusiasm shown by the Steinmühle student body on election day. Democracy is fun! This was evident once again this year, and the organizer of the junior elections at Steinmühle hopes that enthusiasm for the event will not wane in the years to come.
Eva Rink
