Berlin’s Left party has cleared the way for coalition negotiations with the SPD and Greens. After the two prospective partners approved the move, a Left state party conference also voted by a broad margin to begin talks on Monday. Six weeks after the September 20 election, the central question is no longer whether a red-green-red alliance may negotiate, but whether it can negotiate as a credible government.
That is a significant step, but not a government in being. Tagesschau reports that the Left won 25.7 percent and became the largest party, while the incumbent CDU-SPD coalition lost its majority. It is therefore politically defensible for the three parties to explore a majority. Treating the alliance as illegitimate merely because of its composition would disregard both the result and parliament’s duty to form a workable majority.
But permission to negotiate must not be confused with an agreement. The exploratory paper includes the proposed socialisation of about 160,000 homes owned by five companies. According to Tagesschau, a transfer into public ownership with compensation would be unprecedented in Germany. Business groups oppose the plan, while the federal CDU-SPD government intends to stop it through new legislation. Housing policy is therefore the real stress test: a coalition agreement would need to establish not just a political aim, but a credible legal, financial and practical route to deliver it.
The talks also follow a dispute over antisemitism that has already complicated government formation. Tagesschau says the three parties agreed a declaration on Israel’s right to exist and the protection of Jewish life, intended for the coalition agreement, with sanctions up to exclusion from the parliamentary group contemplated for breaches. That is a necessary signal, but it does not yet demonstrate that the commitment will hold when conflicts arise.
The strongest objection is valid: a party-conference vote guarantees neither a deal nor a stable administration. That is precisely the test ahead. The negotiations must show whether the parties can turn ambitious commitments into durable decisions. The next evidence to watch is what they agree on socialisation, funding and enforcement of their antisemitism principles.
Sources
- Tagesschau · Source date: 2026-10-31
- Der Spiegel · Source date: 2026-10-31
Independent editorial content. WUA is not affiliated with any political party. 2026-10-31