Greens | Brandenburg's Greens in the semi-darkness

The stage is brightly lit and Cindy Hahn is the new state chairwoman of the Green Party. Photo: dpa/Carsten Koall There will be demonstrations again in 15 state capitals on Saturday demanding that a ban on the AfD be considered. Brandenburg's Greens cannot be there in Potsdam because they have gathered in Schönefeld for a state delegates' conference. In the semi-dark hall of the Holiday Inn hotel, the full lighting is briefly switched on. The delegates line up in the middle aisle for a photo that will serve as a greeting to the Potsdam test demonstration. The system then switches back to dim lighting. To save energy, which would suit an eco-party? The state chairman Clemens Rostock doesn't know either. That was probably an idea from the director, he tells “nd”.

Since 2024, it has been the fate of the Brandenburg Greens to no longer be in the spotlight. At that time, they missed their return to the state parliament with 4.1 percent - after they had achieved a record result of 10.8 percent five years earlier and had become part of the state government.

The 2024 election defeat was a “serious setback,” recalls Bundestag member Ricarda Lang. A few days later, she resigned as federal chairwoman, says Lang, who took the 744 bus from Berlin's Rudow subway station to Schönefeld in an environmentally conscious manner. At the time, many would have believed that that was it for the Greens in East Germany. But now Ricarda Lang is convinced: "The story of our party as a pan-German party is far from being told to the end."

The last words of her speech were lost in the storm of applause from the delegates. This cheering is fueled even further by a cameraman who produces videos for the Greens. Standing on stage, he films into the hall and encourages Ricarda Lang's listeners with a circular movement of his left arm.

In fact, there is definitely reason to stop moping. Because in the opinion polls, Brandenburg's Greens are back at seven percent. “We have stabilized, many members,” says state chairman Clemens Rostock. For many years, the regional association hovered around 1,000 members, now there are almost 4,100. The growth began in 2019 and really picked up speed in 2024.

Clemens Rostock lost his state parliament mandate in 2024 and wants to get it back in 2029. For the chairman of an extra-parliamentary force, he is quoted surprisingly often in the media. But he cannot replace a parliamentary group. In order for the Greens to return to parliament, they want to strengthen their press work and be more present on social media, even though they only lead a shadowy existence in the traditional media. Rostock is worried about the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania in September because of the 43.8 and 38.2 percent for the AfD. But they also encourage him because the Greens achieved a record result of 8.9 percent in Saxony-Anhalt and at least 5.7 percent in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

Clemens Rostock fails to mention that his party's results in these two federal states would have been impossible without borrowed votes from supporters of the Left. He only mentions the Left when he complains that the Chinese video platform Tiktok favors the Left, BSW and AfD.

In 2024, the Greens in Brandenburg were one of three victims of tactical voting and a campaign strategy by Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke (SPD) that aimed to overtake the AfD, which was far behind in the polls, in the last few meters. Woidke succeeded. But as a result, Left, Green and Free voters were thrown out of the state parliament.

It didn't have to be like that. The starting position for the Greens was not that different from what it is now in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Brandenburg's Green Party regional leader Rostock has recognized: It doesn't matter whether the AfD gets the most votes. With a current poll rating of 40 percent, she seems to be unassailably ahead anyway. A diverse state parliament, including small parliamentary groups, is needed, says Rostock.

This would include a left-wing faction. The Left is currently at nine percent and will elect a new state executive in two weeks. The Greens will not completely re-elect their board until autumn 2027. But because the state chairwoman Juliana Meyer has resigned for personal reasons, Cindy Hahn will be re-elected for the dual leadership with Clemens Rostock on Saturday. She received the most votes in all three rounds of voting. After the first round, fellow candidate Surani Loibl, who was born in Berlin in 1983, was eliminated, after the second round, Viviane Triems, who was born in Dresden in 1997, and in the decisive third round, Cindy Hahn also beat Lirije Nitai-von Petersdorff, who was born in 1972 and comes from Kosovo.

"Federal, European, local and state elections take place in one year, and our goal must be to get back into the Brandenburg state parliament."

Cindy Hahn was born in Schwedt, Brandenburg, in 1978 and grew up there. But she moved away after graduating from high school because she couldn't find a training position in her home country, like so many others at the time. Only after eleven years did she return as a bank clerk and now lives in a village near Schwedt. “Looking ahead to 2029, we have a big task ahead of us,” says Hahn in Schönefeld. "Federal, European, local and state elections take place in one year, and our goal must be to get back into the Brandenburg state parliament."

Although they are not currently represented in parliament, Brandenburg's SPD general secretary Kurt Fischer is attending their party conference. “The Greens are not unimportant,” he assures the “nd”. Why? "They are a democratic party with which we continue to work together in many district councils and city council meetings."

There are a number of former members of the state parliament in the hall: Ursula Nonnemacher, Axel Vogel, Heide Schinowsky, Petra and Ricarda Budke - and Marlen Block. However, Marlen Block belonged to the left-wing faction and left her party a few months before the 2024 state elections. In January 2026 she joined the Greens.

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