Is Germany's government on the brink, because of the BSW? The story is about the 2025 federal election and a possible BSW recount. The video is in German; here is the full story in English.
Here is what it's about, what the Federal Constitutional Court is expected to decide, and what it could mean for the coalition.
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In Germany's 2025 federal election, the BSW (Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht) failed by a very narrow margin. It was about 9,500 votes short of the 5% threshold needed to enter the Bundestag.
The BSW did not want to accept that, and tried very early to get the votes recounted.
So far without success. In February 2026, the BSW filed an election review complaint of almost 180 pages with the Federal Constitutional Court. There is no decision on it yet.
Experts consider its chances of success low.
Now the Federal Constitutional Court is expected to rule this year.
Sahra Wagenknecht put it like this: if a recount gets the BSW into the Bundestag, the government loses its majority.
If the BSW enters the Bundestag, the government no longer has a majority. A completely new coalition would have to be formed. What it would look like, and whether the SPD and CDU would come together again, nobody knows.
The case shows how much can depend on a few votes. The closer a result, the more it matters that every vote is counted in a way people can verify, in a national parliament and in a club. How this works for online voting is explained in our section on security and data protection in online voting.
The BSW was about 9,500 votes short of the 5% threshold.
A decision is expected this year. The BSW filed an election review complaint of almost 180 pages in February 2026.
The government would lose its majority, and a new coalition would have to be formed.
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