Baden-Württemberg Green Party members vote against Palantir

• In a party referendum, 92 percent of Green Party members in Baden-Württemberg voted against the implementation of the data analysis software Gotham by the state police.
• The vote saw a 40 percent turnout, with members demanding that the state government immediately terminate its five-year contract with the US firm Palantir.

Primary Concerns

• Fear of automated, large-scale data profiling (Rasterfahndung).
• Risks regarding the potential handover of data to US authorities.
• The view that the values of digital sovereignty, informational self-determination, and constitutional fidelity are incompatible with US-based providers.

Political Conflict and Context

• The state government, led by Minister-President Cem Özdemir (Greens), intends to maintain the contract while transitioning to a European alternative by 2030.
• The Green parliamentary group recently voted alongside the CDU to reject an SPD proposal to halt the use of Gotham.
• The contract was signed by the CDU-led Interior Ministry without exit clauses, meaning the state faces 25 million euros in licensing fees even if they were to follow the party vote.

Alternatives and Criticism

• Proponents of the referendum have suggested ArgonOS, a French data analysis software, as a potential alternative.
• While the party base opposes Palantir, the Green Party remains fundamentally open to the use of automated data analysis in police work.
• Critics argue that the fundamental risk to civil liberties—namely, that extensive data linking can target innocent citizens—remains unresolved regardless of whether the software is sourced from the US or Europe.