Migrants in German Politics: A Third of the Population, an Eighth of the Bundestag

A Third of the Population, an Eighth of Parliament

According to official statistics, 29.7% of Germany’s population has a migration background, meaning that they or at least one of their parents were not born German citizens. Because many of them have not naturalised, their share of the electorate is much lower, at 14.4%.

Of the 630 members of the Bundestag elected in February 2025, at least 73 have a migration background. That is 11.6%. The share had risen from around 8% in 2017 to 11.3% in 2021 and has now stalled for the first time. Experts point to the snap election, the fierce competition for list places and constituencies under the new electoral law, the parties’ failure to make a real effort to recruit candidates from diverse backgrounds, and the hostility that candidates with a migration background face.

Which Party, How Many?

The key to representation lies with the parties. The share of members with a migration background is 20% among the Greens, 18.8% in the Left Party and 17.5% in the SPD. In the Union (CDU/CSU) it is 6.3%, in the AfD 5.9%. Of the members with a migration background, 53 entered parliament through party lists and only 20 by winning their constituency directly. Who gets into parliament is therefore largely decided by the lists drawn up by party leaderships.

Another detail stands out. 46.6% of the members with a migration background are women, compared with 32.4% in parliament as a whole.

People of Turkish Origin Are the Largest Group

The Bundestag has 19 members with links to Turkey. Most of them sit for the Left Party and the SPD, and none for the AfD. Among them are Aydan Özoğuz, Metin Hakverdi and Mahmut Özdemir (SPD), Serap Güler and Hülya Düber (CDU/CSU), Filiz Polat (Greens) and Ferat Koçak (Left Party).

According to researchers, people of Turkish origin are well represented relative to their share of the electorate, while people of Iranian origin are over-represented relative to both population and electorate. People from the former Soviet Union (most of them ethnic German resettlers), one of the largest migrant groups, are clearly under-represented, and the members from this group sit mostly with the AfD. There is a further problem. Members with a migration background who left the Bundestag had stayed for an average of 1.7 terms, compared with 2.7 terms for other members.

Only One Minister in the Government

The only minister with a migration background in Friedrich Merz’s cabinet is Development Minister Reem Alabali-Radovan (SPD), the daughter of an Iraqi family. This drew criticism when the cabinet was formed. Serap Güler (CDU) serves at the Foreign Office and Natalie Pawlik (SPD), from a family of ethnic German resettlers from Russia, serves as Federal Government Commissioner for Integration, both at the level of minister of state. Iranian-born Omid Nouripour (Greens) is one of the vice-presidents of the Bundestag.

The Gap Is Wider in the States, but 2026 Is Different

At the end of 2021, 7.3% of state parliament members had a migration background. The city-states led the way, with Hamburg (21%), Bremen (19%) and Berlin (17%). Measured against the electorate, the largest gaps are in Rhineland-Palatinate, North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse. Measured against the population, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg join the list.

2026 added two important headlines to this picture. On 13 May, Cem Özdemir was elected Minister-President of Baden-Württemberg, becoming Germany’s first state premier with a migration background. In Berlin, the Left Party came first in the 20 September election with 25.7%. On 31 October, a Left Party conference cleared the way for coalition talks with the SPD and the Greens. If they reach an agreement, Munich-born Elif Eralp, whose family comes from Turkey, will become the capital’s first head of government with a migration background.

Almost Invisible in Local Government

Migration is felt most strongly in the cities, and that is also where the representation gap is widest. In the last comprehensive count (2011) across the 77 cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants, only 198 of 4,670 council members had a migration background. Frankfurt led with 15. In cities with large migrant populations such as Mannheim, Hagen, Heilbronn and Pforzheim, not a single council member had a migration background.

The picture for mayors is even starker. In April 2023, only 4 of the 336 mayors of larger cities had a migration background. Belit Onay in Hanover and Mike Josef in Frankfurt are two of them. In later elections Potsdam, Kiel, Rosenheim and Göttingen also gained mayors with a migration background. Even so, the share remains below 3%. Citizens of non-EU countries cannot vote in local elections either. They can only make their voices heard through advisory integration councils.

Why Is Representation a Security Issue?

Political representation goes beyond fairness. When a section of society cannot see itself in the institutions that make decisions, its trust in the state and its institutions declines and its sense of belonging weakens. This has a direct effect on social peace and on people’s sense of security.

Those who do enter politics are also under pressure. According to a 2022 survey in large cities, around 60% of local politicians had experienced hostility or aggression. People with a migration background, women and those from lower-income groups are disproportionately represented among those considering withdrawing from politics. Deniz Nergiz, chair of the Federal Immigration and Integration Council (BZI), also points out that racism and hostility drive many people away from politics.

The figures show two things clearly. First, the key to representation lies in party lists, and the picture will not change unless the parties want it to. Second, there is no regular official data in this area, and the available information rests on voluntary research. Özdemir and a possible Eralp government are symbolic thresholds. The real question is whether these thresholds will spread to town halls and state parliaments.