For months, the socialist Left Party has been rubbing its eyes in amazement: It won an unexpected 8.8% in the federal election in February, almost double its result in 2021. Since then, opinion polls have put it at around 10%, almost on a par with the environmentalist Greens (11%).

A brief flashback: At the end of 2024, polls put the party well below the five percent threshold needed for representation in the Bundestag.
The Left Party now has 64 lawmakers in the new Bundestag and still has to get used to its surprising success.

This is especially true for the 51 newcomers to the parliamentary group. Its parliamentary leader is Christian Görke, one of the few old hands. The 62-year-old is delighted with his new team.

“We have great people in this new parliamentary group. They all bring a huge amount to the table and we now want to turn that into parliamentary activities,” he said in an interview with DW.

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