A small party conference of the Greens in Rostock voted on Saturday to enter coalition negotiations with the Social Democrats (SPD) and the Left (Die Linke) in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, according to SZ.de. The decision was reached without any votes against or abstentions, the outlet reported.
The approval follows similar decisions by the SPD and the Left, who each gave the green light on Friday. If the talks succeed, the three parties would form the first red-red-green state government in the history of the northeastern German state.
Minister President Manuela Schwesig (SPD) has said negotiations are scheduled to begin Monday at 11 a.m., SZ.de reported.
Why it matters
The vote marks a significant step toward a governing arrangement that has no precedent in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. It also carries weight beyond the state's borders, as it tests whether the three parties can translate a narrow parliamentary majority into a stable administration.
The Sept. 20 election made the Alternative for Germany (AfD) the clear winner and strongest force, but with 32 seats it fell short of a majority in the 71-seat Schwerin state parliament. The SPD holds 29 seats, while the Greens and the Left each hold five. Together the three parties command 39 seats — three more than the 36 needed for a majority, according to SZ.de.
That arithmetic leaves little room for defections, giving each of the smaller partners leverage in the negotiations ahead.
How the parties arrived here
The path to Saturday's decision began with two weeks of exploratory talks that concluded on Friday. At the end of those discussions, the lead negotiators for the SPD, the Left and the Greens recommended that their party bodies authorize formal coalition negotiations, SZ.de reported.
The SPD moved first, approving the step early Friday evening. Its state executive, state party council and parliamentary group had gathered in Güstrow for that purpose.
The Left followed late Friday night. Its state executive reached the decision after an online session lasting several hours, according to SZ.de. Hennis Herbst, who chairs both the state party association and the new Left parliamentary group, told the German Press Agency (dpa) that the vote was unanimous.
The Greens were the last of the three to sign off, doing so at Saturday's small party conference in Rostock. SZ.de reported that the conference backed the move with no opposing votes and no abstentions.
For the Greens, participation in a state government in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern would be a first. The party has not previously been part of a governing coalition in the state.
What the numbers mean
The seat distribution gives the prospective coalition a working but modest cushion. With 39 of 71 seats, the three parties would hold a three-seat advantage over the 36-seat threshold. That margin is narrow enough that any internal disagreement or absence could complicate votes in the state parliament.
The AfD's first-place finish on Sept. 20 nonetheless left it without a route to power, since no other party has signaled willingness to govern with it. That dynamic pushed the SPD, the Left and the Greens toward each other despite their differences.
Broader context
The negotiations in Schwerin are unfolding alongside coalition talks in Berlin, where the Left, the Greens and the SPD have been discussing a new state government. Those talks have drawn internal criticism from within the Left, SZ.de reported.
According to SZ.de, a group of roughly 120 signatories — including Left members of the Bundestag and newly elected members of the Berlin state parliament — sharply criticized an agreement among the three parties on how to address antisemitism. The statement, first reported by Der Tagesspiegel, argued that the wording used in the agreement was broad enough to be deployed against any criticism of Israeli occupation policy.
The signatories also accused the SPD and the Greens of importing "mechanisms of discipline and division" into the Left, saying the aim was to split the party into "good" and "bad" factions and weaken it overall. They further criticized the Berlin Left's state leadership for yielding to pressure from the two potential partners, calling it a serious political error that should be corrected quickly.
Berlin Left state chair Max Schirmer responded to the criticism, saying lively internal debate was expected and welcome, and that the party discusses high hurdles for a new coalition openly, according to SZ.de.
The Berlin agreement was a precondition set by the Greens and the SPD for beginning exploratory talks on forming a new state government. It followed several incidents involving the Left that had raised concerns among the potential partners. Left state chair Kerstin Wolter, Greens parliamentary group leader Werner Graf and SPD state chair Steffen Krach presented the agreement on Thursday. Under its terms, party and parliamentary group members who violate the agreed principles could face expulsion, with the relevant parliamentary group deciding on consequences and communicating its decision transparently.
The agreement also states that remembrance of the Holocaust must be kept alive and that Jewish life must be strengthened, and it commits to reinforcing police and domestic intelligence services so they can identify and combat antisemitic crimes early. Wolter said at the presentation that antisemitism has no place in Berlin and that Israel's right to exist is non-negotiable. Exploratory talks there began Thursday.
What to watch
Coalition negotiations in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern are set to open Monday at 11 a.m. The central question is whether the SPD, the Left and the Greens can convert their three-seat majority into a signed coalition agreement — and whether the Greens will enter a state government in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern for the first time.
