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Distribution of Seats in the 17th German Bundestag
Distribution of seats in the 17th German Bundestag, as at 3 March 2011 © German Bundestag/Klimpel
The distribution of seats in the German Bundestag is proportional to the numbers of votes cast for the various parties. For the Bundestag elections in September, the Sainte-Laguë/Schepers method was used for the first time. The decision to apply this method was taken by the Bundestag on 17 March 2008, to avoid possible paradoxes caused by the previous method. The number of seats to which a party is entitled is calculated according to its share of the second votes. Seats are allocated first to the candidates who won the most first votes in the constituencies, before the remaining seats are allocated to the candidates on the party list in the Land concerned, in the order in which they are listed.
| Parliamentary group | Direct mandates | Land lists | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| CDU/CSU | 213 | 25 | 238 |
| SPD | 63 | 83 | 146 |
| FDP | - | 93 | 93 |
| The Left Party | 16 | 60 | 76 |
| Alliance 90/The Greens | 1 | 67 | 68 |
| Total | 293 | 328 | 621 |
last update: 15. March 2011