Germany

German Bundestag

Political system
Parliamentary system
Structure of parliament
Bicameral
IPU membership
Yes

About parliament

Basic information such as the official name of parliament and details of its structure and leadership. Also includes the current breakdown of MPs by sex and age, and provisions for quotas and reserved seats.

Chamber name
Deutscher Bundestag (German Bundestag)
Structure & status of parliament
Lower chamber
Parliamentary term (years)
4

IPU membership

Affiliation periods
from 1890 to 1912
from 1921 to 1931
from 1951
IPU Geopolitical Group/s
Twelve Plus Group

Speaker

Official title
President of the German Bundestag
Speaker
Bärbel Bas (Female)
Date of birth: 03 May 1968
Term
26 Oct 2021
Additional information

Elected on 26 Oct. 2021.

Speaker terms

No information available

Secretary general

Official title
Secretary General
Secretary General
Michael Schäfer (Male)
Term
01 Sep 2022
Notes

1 Sep. 2022 -

Members

Statutory number of members
598

Notes: In addition to the 598 statutory members, there are 138 extra seats, including 34 overhang seats (Überhangmandate).

Principal mode of designation of members
Directly elected
Directly elected members
736
Current number of members
736
Men
476
Women
260
Percentage of women
35.3%
Statutory number of members per country 
667
Population (in thousands)
84,548
Inhabitants per parliamentarian
126,759

Age

Data on the age of parliamentarians is collected at the start of the legislature, following the most recent elections. This data is not updated during the legislature, except when parliament notifies the IPU of a change in the youngest or oldest member.

Average age of all members
47.3
(2021-10)
Youngest member
Emily Vontz (Female)
Youngest member (years)
22
Oldest member
Dr. Alexander Gauland (Male)
Oldest member (years)
80
Number of members, by age (2021-10)
Breakdown of members by age and gender
18 - 20 21 - 30 31 - 40 41 - 45 46 - 50 51 - 60 61 - 70 71 - 80 81 - 90 91 and over Totals per gender
Male 0 40 79 62 86 147 59 6 0 0 479
Female 0 25 69 34 32 76 21 0 0 0 257
Totals per age interval 0 65 148 96 118 223 80 6 0 0 736
Total <= 45: 309 Total >= 46: 427
Percentage of members, by age
Age at the last election or renewal Overall Male Female
Percentage of MPs 30 years of age or younger
8.8% 5.4% 3.4%
Percentage of MPs 40 years of age or younger
28.9% 16% 12.8%
Percentage of MPs 45 years of age or younger
42.0% 25% 17.4%

Reserved seats and quotas

There are reserved seats in parliament for certain groups
No
Electoral quota for women
Yes

Notes: Voluntary political party quotas.

Sources: cf. individual party statutes.

Youth quota
No

Links to additional information

Parliamentary website
List of members
Rules of procedure/Standing Orders
Constitution

Historical data for IPU membership

Historical data for IPU membership
Year IPU membership
2020-09
List of values for 2020-09
No
2019-04
List of values for 2019-04
No
2018-06
List of values for 2018-06
No