Fraktion (English: faction or fraction) is the name given to recognized parliamentary groups in the German Bundestag.[1] In order to form a recognized parliamentary group (Fraktion), a lesser group (Gruppe) needs at least 5% of the members of the Bundestag.[2] As there is also a 5% election threshold, with parties over this threshold usually getting assigned more than 5% of the seats, almost all groups can nearly automatically declare themselves factions, but due to conflicts, or as a result of below-threshold access granted to regional groups, this is not always the case. Also, even a group has to have at least three members to become recognized as Gruppe and gain more rights than the individuals have.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Deutscher_Bundestag_Plenarsaal_Seitenansicht.jpg/220px-Deutscher_Bundestag_Plenarsaal_Seitenansicht.jpg)
Current factions
Following German unification in October 1990, members of the East German parliament joined, resulting in some joint ventures until the 1990 German federal election in December.
- CDU/CSU faction since September 1949[3]
- October 1990 to December 1990 CDU/CSU/DSU faction
- SPD faction since September 1949[4]
- FDP faction September 1949 to October 2013 and since September 2017[5]
- Alliance 90/The Greens parliamentary group since October 1994[6]
- Faction The Greens March 1983 to October 1990
- Faction The Greens/Alliance 90 October 1990 to December 1990
- Group Alliance 90/The Greens, December 1990 to October 1994
- AfD parliamentary group since September 2017[7]
Former factions
In the early years of the Bundestag, 1949 to 1960, several parties had faction or group status before disappearing.