Thema: Demokratie & Institutionen

Verfassungsrechtliche Rahmenbedingungen für demokratische Regierungsführung, Gewaltenteilung, institutionelles Design und demokratische Prozesse. Umfasst die verfassungsrechtlichen Strukturen für Legislative, Exekutive und Judikative, Wahlsysteme, Föderalismus und verfassungsrechtliche Mechanismen demokratischer Rechenschaftspflicht.

The U.S. President’s Electoral Power Play

On March 25, President Trump signed an executive order (EO) purporting to restructure American election administration. The ironically titled “Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections” EO sets out to, among other things, require those registering to vote in federal elections to present documentary proof of citizenship, and threatens to penalize states that accept late arriving ballots (i.e., mail ballots that are sent prior to, yet not received until after, Election Day). The EO has several legal deficiencies and much of it should be invalidated by the federal judiciary.

11. April 2025

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Gaming Procedure, Gutting Due Process

The Trump administration has admitted that sending Abrego Garcia to a supermax prison in El Salvador known for human rights abuses was an “administrative error” but contends before the U.S. Supreme Court that there is nothing a federal court can do about that. As I shall explain, the Solicitor General’s argument ultimately rests on the claim that the president who frequently boasts about his abilities as a deal maker is a lousy negotiator.

10. April 2025

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Vertraulicher Rassismus

Am 11. März präsentierte der Expert:innenrat Antirassismus seine neue Arbeitsdefinition von Rassismus. Die Definition ist für die Verwaltung entwickelt worden, dürfte aber auch juristisch relevant sein: etwa bei der Bewertung rassistischer Äußerungen von Staatsdiener:innen, Stichwort polizeiliche Chatgruppen. Hier könnte die Definition helfen, disziplinarrechtliche Grenzen klarer zu ziehen – ggf. auch bei Äußerungen im vermeintlich vertraulichen privaten Raum.

10. April 2025

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Kreative Kassenführung à la Karlsruhe?

Nach den Sondervermögen nun ein Sondervotum: Das BVerfG bestätigte die Verfassungskonformität des sogenannten Solidaritätszuschlags, Richterin Wallrabenstein hält den „Kontrollanspruch des Senats darüber, ob vom Gesetzgeber angeführte Finanzbedarfe (fort)bestehen, [...] für verfehlt.“ Entscheidung und Sondervotum verdeutlichen ein grundlegendes Dilemma der „gespenstischen“ deutschen Finanzverfassungspolitik: Ihr zugleich überkonstitutionalisierter und erratischer Charakter macht sie störrisch gegenüber den globalen Umbrüchen der finanz- und geopolitischen Ökonomie, verführt genau darum aber diverse Interessenten zu verfassungsrechtlich innovativen Instrumentalisierungen.

8. April 2025

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Enforcing the Law of Democracy

It was a political bombshell. On Monday, 31 March 2025, Marine Le Pen, leader of the far-right party Rassemblement National (National Rally) in France, was convicted of misappropriation of public funds in the so-called “parliamentary assistants” case. The judgment is marked by an unusual degree of judicial creativity, particularly in its underlying conception of democracy, which may be understood through the lens of militant democracy. Although it does not constitute a political judgment in the traditional, partisan sense, its constitutional and symbolic significance is substantial—and the backlash it has provoked against the judiciary is a cause for concern.

7. April 2025

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Dictatorship of the Court vs. Will of the People?

On March 31st, French politician Marine Le Pen was convicted for embe-zzlement of public funds – and sentenced to ineligibility to run for office for five years, effective immediately. Since then, the RN incessantly gathered outrage, calling out the “tyranny of judges” and claiming that the verdict end-angers democracy. After a week, it’s time to take a closer look at “the scandal”. Spoiler alert: There is no “political death” that might be the fault of a court – if at all, it was a (easily avoidable) suicide.

7. April 2025

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Romanian Militant Democracy in Action

On March 11, 2025, the Romanian Constitutional Court definitively barred far-right extremist Călin Georgescu from running as a candidate in the upcoming presidential election. This decision represents the culmination of a series of landmark decisions through which the Court has strengthened the principle of militant democracy. Moreover, the Court has affirmed the EU and NATO membership as a central component of Romania’s democracy and rule of law, shielding it from subversion by the principles of non-regression and militant democracy.

1. April 2025

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Der Staat gegen Marine Le Pen?

Gestern ist die französische Politikerin Marine Le Pen wegen Veruntreuung öffentlicher Gelder zu einer Geldstrafe i. H. v. 100.000 Euro sowie zu vier Jahren Freiheitsstrafe verurteilt worden. Besonders schwerwiegend und poli-tisch brisant: Als Nebenstrafe wird Le Pen mit sofortiger Wirkung für fünf Jahre das passive Wahlrecht entzogen, sodass sie sich bei den französischen Präsidentschaftswahlen im Jahr 2027 nicht zur Wahl wird stellen dürfen. Wurde hier nach Akten bestimmt, was an der Urne entschieden werden sollte?

1. April 2025

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The Executive’s Responsibility for the Constitution

Who is responsible for safeguarding the constitution? Traditionally, constitutional lawyers have focused on the courts. But the alarming actions of Trump 2.0 and democratic backsliding across the world suggests we should think far more about the role of the executive. The UK House of Lords Constitution Committee (“the Committee”) has recently published a report on Executive oversight and responsibility for the UK constitution, which emphasizes institutions, in particular the civil service, as a solution the threats to constitutional governance posed but the executive. But this may be wishful thinking.

31. März 2025

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