Abstract
Much has changed on the political scene in Eastern Germany since unification in 1989, when it was difficult to predict which political parties would win the support of East German citizens after the immediate transition years. Chancellor Helmut Kohl’s promise of the good life attracted many to the CDU. Would their enthusiasm endure? Observers predicted that the newly formed SPD would ultimately appeal to those who took for granted an active state role in social provision and were committed to democratic government. The discredited communist Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS, formerly Socialist Unity Party, SED), still suffering from the stigma of being the ruling party in the German Democratic Republic, seemed likely to remain the choice of only a limited proportion of the population and its survival in 1990 and 1994 a passing fluke (see also Chapter 12). Yet just eight years later the PDS is the third most powerful party in Eastern Germany, after the CDU and the SPD, and in some states and communities it has been more successful than the two major parties.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
