Even though we base our voting procedures on the German Bundestag elections, we also want to enable people without German citizenship (but residing in Germany) to participate. People with German citizenship must verify their account on openPetition beforehand using their eID card or a postal PIN. People without German citizenship must also verify their account beforehand, but can only do so by sending a postal PIN via mail.

Our sister organization ABSTIMMUNG21 allowed people to suggest topics in spring 2026 – and this opportunity was widely used: 396 topic suggestions were submitted, and over 200,000 votes were cast during the voting period. The three topic suggestions with the most signatures will be on the ballot for the referendum in autumn 2026.

1. Examination of a ban on the AfD
2. Active pension also for the self-employed
3. Solidarity-based social system

A fourth topic will be determined in June 2026 by openPetition through a petition-based selection process. The petition with the most signatures will become the final topic on the ballot.

When choosing topics on openPetition ten different petitions are competing against each other. Both openPetition and ABSTIMMUNG21 eV are non-partisan, so balanced topics were particularly important to us. The criteria for selecting topics were:

• Do the topics as a whole cover the political spectrum in terms of the opinions of the various political groups (plurality)?
• Are there any current public opinion polls on this topic (relevance/urgency/majority will/controversy)?
• Are there political debates on this topic, even though a decision on the issue might not be reached by autumn (relevance/urgency/feasibility)?
• Can the Bundestag really decide on this (feasibility)?
• Does the fourth theme (plurality) contribute to a greater diversity of topics in this year's vote?
• Is this topic new and was it not already part of our self-organized referendum (New/Fair Competition)?
• Is this a new topic, and isn't there already a regular petition about it on openPetition (New/Fair Competition)?

The question of whether the Bundestag can actually decide on this, and whether the topic has not recently been addressed in the form of past referendums or ongoing petitions, has eliminated many topics.

We made every effort to ensure that there is at least one important issue for everyone. Unlike ABSTIMMUNG21 openPetition opted against an open topic submission process and instead identified ten controversial topics based on the criteria mentioned above. This was primarily due to resource constraints and overlapping deadlines. The identified topics do not reflect the opinions of either ABSTIMMUNG21 or openPetition , but serve solely to facilitate referendums on pressing issues of our time.

openPetition is a learning organization that is driving this democracy experiment forward together with ABSTIMMUNG21 . If you would like to give us feedback, please feel free to send us an email to info@openpetition.net.

Democratic elections and votes must be able to guarantee a secret and equal vote – this applies even if they take place online.

opn.vote guarantees the secrecy of the vote through an anonymous digital ballot. Only the voter has access to the digital ballot, and no one else. This is made possible by the voting key, which is generated only on the voter's own device and known only to the voter. The ballot is cryptographically signed, so it cannot be forged or duplicated.

The votes cast are stored publicly and immutably in a decentralized blockchain, the Gnosis Chain. Since the votes cannot be assigned to any individual, the secrecy of the vote is maintained. Anyone can verify their own vote and, after the election, check all votes for validity and count them themselves. No central authority can interfere with the voting process and falsify the results.

Further information on the voting procedure: https://www.openpetition.eu/pl/opn-vote

It's all a matter of security: Only if time intervals between the individual steps are maintained can we guarantee, thanks to state-of-the-art technical solutions, that the following requirements are always met: general, immediate, free, equal, confidential.

Time is particularly important for the last principle of “secret”: The secret lies in the fact that every person can exercise their right to vote in such a way that it is not possible to trace how they voted.

Thanks to state-of-the-art, in-house developed technology, we can offer the option of online voting. However, we don't want to exclude anyone, which is why voting by mail is also possible this year. You can order your voting materials until August 9, 2026. After that date, you can only register to vote online. This ensures that no one participates in the referendum twice.

Software for democratic participation such as elections or referendums should not only come from large tech corporations or be in the hands of the state. The democratic tools of the future belong in the hands of citizens.

Help us realize the vision of the first non-profit platform for nationwide voting with a donation.

The opposite is true: With fair rules, direct democracy can take the wind out of populists' sails. It makes politics more transparent and gives all citizens more influence – not just those who shout the loudest. With independent fact-checking, a debate format, and a neutral comparison of positions, we ensure that everyone is objectively informed.

Due to the length of the process – up to four years at the federal level – referendums are also less suitable for populist knee-jerk reactions. However, they do trigger intense debates throughout society. This breaks down existing bubbles, broadens and deepens the discussion, and thus contributes to a more objective approach.

In general, referendums reflect society, but are not responsible for its condition. Society can see how things are going. It doesn't always have to come to a referendum. The preemptive effect of direct democracy ensures that politicians have to address the diverse interests of the population. Direct democracy also acts as an outlet. It can remove the widespread feeling that people are not being heard. By enabling everyone to play a creative role, direct democracy focuses less on "those at the top." While there are good opportunities to launch a popular initiative, it is up to each and every one of us to determine how we fare.

Together with our cooperation partner ABSTIMMUNG21 , we rely on Article 20, Paragraph 2 of the Basic Law. It states: "All state authority emanates from the people. It is exercised by the people in elections and referendums […] ."

So there's already a certain legitimacy for the nationwide vote. There's no concrete implementing law yet that would guarantee its binding nature. That's why we're organizing the vote ourselves.

Nevertheless, the vote can and should not only be a signal for the instrument of the referendum, but also have an issue-specific impact.

Together with ABSTIMMUNG21 , we're trying to grow and encourage more and more people to participate in this democratic experiment. Everything we do is funded by donations.

If many people not only vote for the Bundestag but also vote on an issue via openPetition & ABSTIMMUNG21 , then Parliament receives a clear mandate to act.

Direct democracy in Switzerland may be a model in principle, but in crucial respects it is not, and above all, cannot be transferred 1:1 to Germany. Unlike in Switzerland, we favor a three-tiered model of direct democracy at the state and federal levels: popular initiative, popular petition, and referendum. Following the initiative, the possibility of legal review is provided (preventive review of legal norms). The Federal Constitutional Court can thus examine the compatibility of a draft bill with the Basic Law and international law and reject the initiative if fundamental and minority rights would be violated. The popular petition and referendum then no longer take place. This is a key difference from direct democracy in Switzerland.

There is no provision for a comprehensive prior review. Switzerland also does not have its own constitutional court. Laws passed by the people can only be brought before the European Court of Human Rights after the fact, which then examines whether they comply with the European Convention on Human Rights.

No. We are guided by the three-tiered popular legislation system in the German federal states and the joint legislative proposal of the democracy organizations Mehr Demokratie, OMNIBUS for Direct Democracy, and Democracy International. This provides for the protection of fundamental and minority rights. This is ensured by the fact that every bill drafted by a popular initiative is reviewed by the Federal Constitutional Court, at the request of the government or parliament, for its compatibility with the Basic Law and international law – and can be stopped in the event of a violation. This "preventive review of norms" already exists in direct democratic processes in all federal states.

Brexit is not a suitable example of direct democracy in Germany. It was initiated by the British government and abused by the parties for populist purposes. There was no clear voting template and no balanced information for the survey. Furthermore, in Switzerland, for example, it is common practice for international treaties to be voted on twice: once at the beginning of the negotiations and once at the end, when all the details of the agreement are on the table.

Our society is facing – today and always will be – a variety of major challenges. These are best solved jointly through dialogue with the public. That's why openPetition primarily promotes petitions. Direct democracy provides civil society with another opportunity to put ideas and concepts to a vote. It's unlikely that people will feel 100% supported by a single party – but at the federal level, elections are the only way citizens are directly consulted. Why is the public only trusted to be sovereign every four years? Referendums help to secure political decisions and highlight where there is room for improvement. This can strengthen confidence in one's own self-efficacy and in democracy and help combat political disenchantment.

For years, the legal introduction of nationwide referendums has been blocked. Yet there is a real need, and representative surveys regularly show that more than two-thirds of the population consistently support them. By allowing people to vote on specific, important issues, we make the nationwide vote tangible and tangible. We demonstrate that more democracy is also possible at the federal level!