Rhineland-Palatinate Landtag
Encyclopedia
Diet (assembly)
In politics, a diet is a formal deliberative assembly. The term is mainly used historically for the Imperial Diet, the general assembly of the Imperial Estates of the Holy Roman Empire, and for the legislative bodies of certain countries.-Etymology:...
of the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
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Article 79, Section 1 of the Rhineland-Palatinate constitution
Constitution
A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...
provides: "The Landtag
Landtag
A Landtag is a representative assembly or parliament in German-speaking countries with some legislative authority.- Name :...
is the supreme organ of political decision-making, elected by the people. It represents the people, elects the Minister-President and confirms the cabinet, passes the laws and the budget, controls the executive and enunciates the popular will in the conduct of public affairs, in questions of European policy and according to the agreements between the Landtag and the cabinet."
The Landtag consists of 101 members.
The Landtag convenes in the Deutschhaus building, where also the first democratically elected parliament German history had convened, the Rhenish-German national convention of the Mainz Republic.
The German flag used in the Landtag is a historical one used during the Hambacher Fest
Hambacher Fest
The Hambacher Fest was a German national democratic festival—disguised as a non-political county fair—that was celebrated from 27 May to 30 May 1832 at Hambach Castle near Neustadt an der Weinstraße ....
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Current Composition
After the elections of March 27, 2011, the composition of the Landtag is as follows:| Party | Seats |
|---|---|
| Social Democratic Party (SPD) Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany... |
42 |
| Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Christian Democratic Union (Germany) The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum... |
41 |
| Alliance '90/The Greens Alliance '90/The Greens Alliance '90/The Greens is a green political party in Germany, formed from the merger of the German Green Party and Alliance 90 in 1993. Its leaders are Claudia Roth and Cem Özdemir... |
18 |
Presidents of the Landtag
- 1947 – 1948 Jakob Diel, CDUChristian Democratic Union (Germany)The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
- 1948 – 1959 August Wolters, CDUChristian Democratic Union (Germany)The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
- 1959 – 1971 Otto van Volxem, CDUChristian Democratic Union (Germany)The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
- 1971 – 1974 Johannes Baptist Rösler, CDUChristian Democratic Union (Germany)The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
- 1974 – 1985 Albrecht Martin, CDUChristian Democratic Union (Germany)The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
- 1985 – 1991 Heinz Peter Volkert, CDUChristian Democratic Union (Germany)The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
- 1991 – 2006 Christoph Grimm, SPDSocial Democratic Party of GermanyThe Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
- since 2006 Joachim Mertes, SPDSocial Democratic Party of GermanyThe Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...