The Green Party

The Green Party has been examined for the way it came into being and achieved a measure of acceptance in the Federal Republic of Germany. The Greens constitute a third party in what had been generally a two-party system, with the two parties being the Christian Democrats and the Social Democrats. In the 1960s and 1970s, numerous local groups, many nonpartisan citizen action groups focused on local problems, and others new social movements addressing national problems being ignored by the national parties, came into being and eventually provided the basis for an alliance in 1980 which launched the Greens as a national party. The issue is how the Greens developed since that time and how they might fare as a movement in the United States.

The Greens achieved some success slowly, after a period of initial infighting, dismal electoral results in 1980, and the loss of its most conservative wing in 1981:

By forcefully and creatively raising the issues of ecology, peace, and human rights, which had been largely neglected by the major parties, the Greens soon overcame the Federal Republic's formidable barriers to the success of new parties (1).

This is one of the prime reasons for the growth of the Greens in Germany, the fact that the party addressed issues ignored by the two major parties. These issues clearly have a constituency greatly interested in them and eager to find a national group to address them.

At the same time, the Greens' federal program was considered rad

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onal powers in Germany that also facilitated the rise of the Greens, for the system allows new parties to win seats in the state parliaments where the party can build up resources, experience, and credibility. Among the political facilitators cited are those deriving from the party system itself, and the Greens were able to move into a political vacuum as the ruling party started retreating from its promised reforms. Another aspect of developing parties seen as important by Frankland and Schoonmaker is the internal structure of the new party itself, for new parties are usually faced with battles between factions and with schisms in the early years. New parties also have to gain positive media exposure and have to develop necessary organizational capabilities. Competent leadership and an active membership are conducive to success. However, the Greens do not seem to have benefited greatly from such valuable elements, since the Greens have shown a deep distrust of their leaders and have given only shallow loyalty to the party organization. These traits would appear to be barriers to the long-term survival of the party. Indeed, the Greens did attempt structural reform after losing in all-German elections (6). The sort of for

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