The “Greens” of the “first hour” in the Federal Republic of Germany: social characteristics of the electorate

Introduction. Currently, the increased interest in the German party “Union 90 / The Greens”, associated with its transformation from a “one-day butterfly” into a “green monster”, makes it relevant to turn to the origins of this party and raises the question of the legitimacy of comparing the early and modern “greens”
Materials and Methods. The fundamental principles of the research are the principles of historicism and authenticity, following which allows one to create a “portrait” of the “greens” at the stage of their organizational design and initial stage of development. Using historical-genetic and historical-comparative methods, the social component of the electorate of the Greens and their candidates is presented. The chronological scope of the article goes beyond the traditional consideration of the history of the party, from its creation in 1980, and extends to 1978. The source base of the research is the results of the elections to the Landtags of West Germany (1978), the European Parliament (1979), the Bundestag (1980, 1983), contained in the periodical press, and public opinion polls.
Analysis. The historical and sociological analysis of the above data allows us to state that the early “greens” mainly expressed the interests of the “new” middle strata of society (the intelligentsia, who worked as hired employees, the staff close to it, who held average leadership positions) and students. The voters of the Greens and the Greens themselves were distinguished by their relatively young age, high educational level and commitment to post-material values, which meant the need for freedom and creative self-realization. Advocating for the preservation of human life in conditions of environmental and nuclear danger, the “greens” have activated the most mobile part of society, ready for change.
Results. The Green Party became an indicator of the socio-economic, political and socio-cultural development of the FRG at the turn of the 1970s-1980s. The specific foreign policy situation in the world and the domestic political situation in the country predetermined the tasks and programmatic guidelines of the emerging party.

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