The Brandenburg State Parliament: A departure full of expectations!

The Brandenburg State Parliament: A departure full of expectations!

On October 26, 2025, we remember a historical milestone: the first constituent session of the Brandenburg state parliament after the end of the GDR, which took place in Potsdam on October 26, 1990. This meeting brought together dissidents, pragmatists and former SED members. Frank Werner from the CDU remembers the festive mood that prevailed despite the chaotic conditions. “It was a departure into a new time,” he says, expressing the euphoria that moved him and many others when they came together for the first time in the new state parliament RBB24.

The beginnings were anything but easy. The state parliament initially met in the State Chancellery before it had to move to the former SED party college due to structural defects. Frank Werner, who joined the CDU in 1986 and won a direct mandate in 1990, describes the first two years as a time of certain harmony where, despite factual disputes, there was fundamental respect. “There was something exciting about working with many different opinions,” says Werner.

A path into politics

Werner, born on January 29, 1957 in Elsterwerda, was already active in politics before reunification. He had completed vocational training as a maintenance mechanic and began studying education, which he did not complete. In 1990 he took over the management of the cultural office in Bad Liebenwerda before he was allowed to enter the political stage Wikipedia).

He continued his political path in the state parliament until 2009, where he sat on several committees and was particularly committed to cultural issues such as the music school law. Because of his years of experience, he brings a mix of joy and frustration with political decisions. “We often had the feeling that we had better concepts, but our applications were often rejected,” he admits. He particularly sharply criticized the Brandenburg Police Act of 1994, which, in his opinion, was perceived as a relapse into old surveillance patterns.

Challenges of the new era

The political landscape has changed significantly since then. Manfred Stolpe from the SPD was Prime Minister at the time and repeatedly had to deal with suspicions of Stasi involvement. Today, Werner expresses his concerns about the rise of the AfD and its influence on democracy. “I miss the more intense debates in the state parliament that once existed,” he reflects.

He also speaks out against the merger of Berlin and Brandenburg because he fears the financial disadvantages for Brandenburg. The closer he is to the citizens in his political work, the clearer it becomes to him how important it is to take responsibility and take it seriously. “A good member of the state parliament should always have the ear of the citizens,” Werner continued.

His career in the CDU, which was founded on June 26, 1945 in the Soviet occupation zone, reflects the changes in German politics Wikipedia. During the GDR, the Eastern CDU was a bloc party and often had to submit to the SED's instructions. This uncertainty factor and the constant surveillance by the Ministry of State Security have shaped the political climate for many years.

Frank Werner has mastered numerous challenges since entering politics and looks back on his time in the state parliament with a critical but also proud look. “The work in the local council is easier because it is more about factual decisions,” he summarizes and remains one of the last political activists who helped shape the dawn of a new era.