Contender for the German Constitutional Court withdraws following a dispute with the government
In a significant development, a dispute over the nomination of Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf to Germany's Federal Constitutional Court has caused a notable rift within Chancellor Friedrich Merz's coalition. Brosius-Gersdorf, nominated by the junior coalition partner, the Social Democrats (SPD), has faced strong opposition from Merz's conservative CDU/CSU faction due to her liberal views on key social issues.
The first major conflict within Merz's governing coalition arose over Brosius-Gersdorf's nomination. Right-wing members of the coalition accused her of holding "ultra-left" positions, including on issues such as abortion and the Islamic headscarf. Unproven plagiarism allegations were also levelled against her.
These disagreements led to the postponement of the parliamentary vote needed to confirm her appointment, marking a significant internal conflict within the coalition. Merz publicly defended Brosius-Gersdorf against what he called "entirely unacceptable" and biased attacks, criticizing the social media environment for enabling personal defamation.
Despite Merz's defense, the CDU/CSU bloc made it clear to Brosius-Gersdorf that her election was unlikely, leading her to withdraw her candidacy in early August 2025. The SPD strongly defended Brosius-Gersdorf's candidacy, with SPD general-secretary Tim Kluessendorf describing the situation as a bad day for political culture and stating that Brosius-Gersdorf did not receive the backing she deserved from the CDU/CSU.
The confirmation of the three candidates for the Constitutional Court has been on hold since the aborted vote last month. The aborted vote aimed to approve two other candidates, whose nominations have also been halted. Kluessendorf's opinion: Politicizing Germany's Constitutional Court is a dangerous game.
Brosius-Gersdorf herself stated that much of the criticism against her was "defamatory and detached from reality". She withdrew her nomination for a seat on Germany's Constitutional Court, stating that she was "no longer available as a candidate" due to the lack of support within the CDU/CSU bloc.
This dispute has been described as one of the coalition's first major internal conflicts, exposing tensions between the conservative and center-left coalition partners over the politicization of judicial appointments and culture war issues impacting the judiciary. The coalition took office in May.
[1] The Guardian [2] Deutsche Welle [3] BBC News [4] The New York Times [5] The Economist
- The argument over Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf's nomination to Germany's Federal Constitutional Court has resulted in policy-and-legislation debates, particularly regarding the politicization of judicial appointments and culture war issues.
- The confirmation process for Germany's Constitutional Court candidates has been stalled due to war-and-conflicts within Chancellor Friedrich Merz's coalition over Brosius-Gersdorf's nomination, with politics playing a significant role in the general-news headlines.
