ABSTRACT
Before the breakup of the old East German political order, the place of local government and politics there was firmly set. It was one of unequivocal and nearly total subordination to central direction. The place of local government and politics in the “new German states” is also firmly set if not yet fully in place. The formal installation of grassroots political leadership in the German Democratic Republic came only after the 5 May 1990 local elections. A final segment of the new political leadership was composed of individuals who had some degree of direct involvement in the old political order. With the passage of time, eastern German towns and counties also hired administrators who had been trained in the West to head such bodies as their budget offices, their legal sections, and/or their departments for public order. When the 1990 local elections were held, East Germany still formally existed, and its laws still determined local competence and responsibility.
