Parliamentary groups in the State Parliament of Rhineland-Palatinate

Parliamentary groups are the “parties in parliament”. Members of the State Parliament who belong to the same party, form a parliamentary group. In the 19th legislative term, there are currently four parliamentary groups: the CDU with 39 Members, the SPD with 32 Members, the AfD with 24 Members and BÜNDNIS 90/DIE GRÜNEN with 10 Members of Parliament.

Under Article 85 a of the State Constitution (Landesverfassung), the parliamentary groups contribute to the fulfilment of the State Parliament’s duties, in particular by coordinating parliamentary activities. They decide who sits on which committee on behalf of the group and suggest candidates for elections. At weekly group meetings and in working groups, members of a parliamentary group jointly develop and coordinate parliamentary initiatives, prepare for plenary sittings and committee meetings and determine who will speak on behalf of the group in parliament and how the group will vote. Parliamentary groups are entitled to appropriate funding. The amount is determined by the Parliamentary Groups Act (Fraktionsgesetz).

In addition to the Fraktionsgesetz and the Landesverfassung, further rights and obligations of the parliamentary groups are set out in the State Parliament’s Rules of Procedure.

Further information can also be found under “Role and Work of the Rhineland-Palatinate State Parliament”.