„Candidates for Parliamentary Elections in Multi-Level Germany across Time" (CandiData)

Without candidates, elections would be impossible. They fulfill an important task for the functioning of parliamentary democracy by providing the voters with a choice on the ballot. During its project on candidate nomination for the 2017 Bundestag election, IParl researched who was running, who decided on the chances of success of any given candidacy and which criteria affected nominations. Based on these findings, the CandiData-project aims at identifying long-term developments in candidate selection. Do the same persons compete on every occasion or do the parties renew their candidate supply? Are there recognizable patterns by which the candidates manoeuvre the multi-level electoral systems in Germany? Under which conditions will candidates be nominated in a way that allows them to enter parliament?

To answer these and more questions, CandiData provides a continuously growing dataset. During the first project phase, we gathered the complete records of all candidates at 38 elections at the state and federal level as well as from elections to the European Parliament in Germany between 2013 and 2022. The dataset is expanded with every new election. Additionally, we strive to include candidates from elections before 2013 to improve our long-term analysis capabilities.

For any further questions or advice, please contact Dr Danny Schindler and/or Daniel Hellmann.