New Voters for the Bundestag: Potential Turnout Among Third Party Nationals in General Elections.
Policy Brief | August 2013
Immigrants from non-EU countries (third countries) living in Germany have enormous untapped potential as voters in the federal elections - one reason is that voting rights are tied to naturalisation. Do third party nationals want to participate politically and where is there need for action to increase their political participation? Based on an in-depth analysis of data from the Immigrant Citizens Survey, this Policy Brief analyses the interest of third country nationals in voting, their interest in naturalisation and their desire for parliamentary representation. The Expert Council’s Research Unit recommends a stronger push for naturalisation and greater emphasis on citizenship and voting rights.
