Advisory boards for migrants and democratic regression. Actors, conflicts and representation in comparative perspective

Abstract

In Germany, the representation of migrants in local government is becoming an increasing important topic. Migrants are characterized by different socioeconomic and cultural aspects as well as by their political status and rights (EU citizen, refugees). West-Germany has a long history of migration since 1945 and higher numbers of migrants. But also in Eastern Germany, conflicts on self-representation become obvious. Different actors such as political parties and churches claimed to represent migrants politically. This comparative study in the West German city Gelsenkirchen (North Rhine-Westphalia), in the smaller town of Bebra (Hessen) and in the East German city of Leipzig (Saxonia) show a great variation regarding effective participation. In the states of Hessen and North-Rhine Westphalia regional legislation provides for a directly elected advisory board for foreigners since the 1990s. Due to low voter turnout and a lack of impact some of these advisory boards for migrants are highly criticised in the 2020s. In Leipzig, an informal appointed board was introduced, which was quite effective in local politics. Here, individual actors and self-representation were an important factor, which lead to the introduction of direct election of this board.