The weekend before Election Day, I decided to leave Berlin and see how other parts of Germany is acknowledging the election. Since I have not been to West Germany, I decided to visit Cologne.
In my previous post, I have made a point that German election is much tamer and quieter compared to the US one, by a lot. (Side note: a friend of mine, a German, actually argued that low key elections are better for the country; those elections are more straightforward, efficient, and economical – the campaign professional in me begs to differ). So I came to Cologne with a very low expectation of seeing anything political/election related, you know, with it being so far away from the Capital and it not having any political reputation.
Oh boy, was I wrong.
I first saw some political presence in Chlodwig Platz; Reissdorf Kölsch, one of the many beer breweries in Cologne was having a street festival. CDU, SPD, the Green Party, and MLPD (Marxist Lenninist Party of Germany) had stands set up right at the entrance to the street festival.
SPD Stand at Chlodwig Platz. Cologne, Germany. 9/16/2017.
Party members and volunteers were talking to interested voters and giving out free “swags”. These stands brought me back to the few festivals in Ohio where my team and I set up stands to register voters, and talk to them about getting involved in the campaign. One thing that stood up the most, the conversations between these volunteers and voters were mostly about ideology; instead of focusing in turning voters into grassroots volunteers, they are more focused on making sure that their party messages are conveyed correctly. But then again, grassroots in Germany is not as intense as it is in the United States and the way the parties are set up in Germany does not require random recruitment of supporters.
Unlike Berlin, there were not that many “yard signs” in Cologne. However, parties presence was certainly heavier, and the people’s attitude toward the election is more positive. My friend whom I was staying with explained that is how Cologne is; the people in Cologne are a lot more receptive and open toward new ideas whereas in Berlin, a city of hipster, being apolitical is a “cool” thing, hence political talks and presence are overshadowed by the arts and flavor of the city. This, I still can’t wrap my head around – Berlin is the capital city after all.
In the City Center’s U-bahn station, Angela Merkel’s face on CDU’s newest Erfolgreich für Deutschland campaign is plastered all over.
CDU campaign: Erfolgreich für Deutschland. Source: CDU.de
Right outside, I ran into the first FDP grassroots effort that I have seen since I got to Germany, which is a rather large stand that surprisingly draws more crowd than any of the other stands I saw earlier at Chlodwig Platz. Does being in a City Center with a lot more people help? Perhaps. But FDP also has more support in West Germany, so it is no surprise that their stand is relatively more crowded than the other parties’.
FDP Stand. Cologne, Germany. 9/16/2017.
Bars were also promoting their election night parties, some as a joke, the other more serious. Regardless, they are celebrating election night, something that I have not seen in Berlin (again, despite it being the capital). I think I need to lower my expectation for Berlin in terms of really experiencing the election’s atmosphere. Maybe then, Berlin can surprise me like the City with K did.
Chasing Elections 