The MPs are giving up their mandates half way through the legislative period to ensure a renewal within the party, allowing the candidates who scored just behind them in the last elections to move up in the ranks.

Wagner had replaced Justin Turpel in 2015, who left for health reasons. Baum succeeded Serge Urbany in 2016. Both were re-elected to the Chamber of Deputies in the 2018 elections and are now making way for Nathalie Oberweis and Myriam Cecchetti, who will be sworn in on 19 May.

“We believe that especially a small party like déi Lénk must renew itself regularly to show that we are more people than just the couple that are seen and heard in the media and also because of election system is what it is, making it difficult for small parties to renew,” said party spokeswoman Carole Thoma in a video message about the rotation system.

The Green party during its beginnings also had a rotation system but abolished this as its number of MPs grew.

Oberweis and Cecchetti have been working with the MPs to ensure a smooth handover. “They participate in faction meetings and already know the files,” Thoma said.

The appointment of Oberweis and Cecchetti is also a step towards more gender parity in parliament, raising the number of female MPs to 21 out of 60.

The Greens count five women and four men in their parliamentary group, the LSAP is balanced with five men and women each. The DP has eight male against four female MPs, with the CSV counting six women out of 21 mandates. The ADR (4 seats) and the Pirate Party (2 seats) are male only, with déi Lénk now making a switch from male to female.