The Ecological Democratic Party is a green party that is active throughout Germany and has its clear focus in Bavaria.
The party's rise is closely linked to its founder, the politician and environmentalist Herbert Gruhl. Gruhl was Member of the Bundestag from 1969 to 1980 and member of CDU. The founding of ÖDP dates back on the ecological movement in the 1970s. Gruhl gained attention by publishing a best-seller in 1975: "Ein Planet wird geplündert" (A Planet is Being Plundered). In the book he criticized the growth-oriented economy of industrial society. He also attacked nuclear energy policy and thus represented a clear minority position among Christian Democrats, while an intensive discussion was already developing in the SPD about a possible nuclear phase-out. Gruhl left the CDU in 1978 but stayed as non-partisan member of the Bundestag until 1980. He founded the "Grüne Aktion Zukunft" (GAZ), which later became part of The Greens. Gruhl lost the election for the party chairmen. Gruhl had a more conservative consistent life ethic ("Lebensschutzkonzeption"), which addresses besides environmentalism also the rejection of abortion, euthanasia and the death penalty. Also his policy was referred as ethno-centric. Gruhl left the Greens and, in 1982, founded the ÖDP.[9]
Some commentators have said that the party has moved over the years in a more liberal direction regarding some issues since the mid-2000s.[10] In many issues it emphasizes, such as the environment and trade, it is similar to the Alliance '90/The Greens. It differs from them by being less supportive of immigration and restrictions on state powers in criminal justice issues, not focusing on gay and lesbian rights as part of its platform, and having a differing view of feminism.
It was one of the earliest supporters (since 1989) of a green tax shift, an idea which later gained broader support and has been partially implemented in Germany since the Social Democratic Party and The Greens were elected to form the Federal government in 1998.
Though a very small party – it has not gained seats in a state parliament or in the Bundestag – the ÖDP became notable for its involvement in the opposition to a Czech nuclear reactor in Temelin, across the border from Bavaria. It led an initiative for a popular referendum to abolish the Bavarian Senate (that state's upper house) which was successful. It brought suit against a law in North Rhine-Westphalia which requires parties to receive 5% of the vote in order to take their seats in local councils, as well as a national law which reserves state financing only for parties that got more than one percent of the vote in at least three state elections; both laws were overturned.
The party has a youth organization called Young Ecologists (Junge Ökologen).
In the 2014 European parliament elections, the ÖDP received 0.7% of the national vote (185,119 votes in total) and returned a single MEP.[11] The MEP, Klaus Buchner, joined The Greens–European Free Alliance (Greens/EFA) parliamentary group.[12]
