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The joy on Sunday afternoon was great, at least for some of the Greens.
“It's so wonderful,” said Lisa Paus, the party's financial expert, on Twitter.
“We did it!” Agreed the labor market policy spokesman Wolfgang Strengmann-Kuhn.
Both relate to a decision of the digital federal party convention: the new basic program includes a reference to the unconditional basic income.
Around 62 percent of the delegates voted to include a groundbreaking statement in Chapter 6 with the heading “Ensure solidarity”.
It reads: "We are guided by the guiding principle of an unconditional basic income."
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It is only a short sentence, but it is intended to give the idea of an unconditional basic income (UBI) a new impetus in Germany and will probably lead to hard discussions within the Greens.
Because the federal executive had clearly spoken out against the wording.
He also wants to overcome Hartz IV - and with it, for example, the sanctions for long-term unemployed who violate the requirements of the job center.
Only those who cannot finance their livelihood should receive help.
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Party leader Annalena Baerbock therefore again campaigned for the so-called guarantee, which should achieve this.
This also remained part of the basic program - but was supplemented by the sentence that promises unconditional support for everyone in the future.
A more far-reaching BGE initiative, which other base members had introduced as a further option, did not find a majority.
In addition to Baerbock, other prominent figures in the party openly expressed their rejection of the BGE advances.
“As a working class child, I am primarily committed to a permeable education system.
An unconditional basic income doesn't help, ”tweeted Cem Özdemir.
"It's a shame that the balanced proposal of the federal executive board did not get through."
Frank Bsirske, ex-chairman of the service union Ver.di and newly elected Bundestag candidate of the Wolfsburg Greens, also made a plea against the BGE at the party congress.
He calculated: If 82 million people were to receive 1,000 euros a month, the costs would be almost a trillion euros - year after year.
Focus on guarantee protection
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In net terms, the UBI would cost as much as the federal, state and local governments spend in total per year, said Bsirkse.
The bulk of the dependent employees have to raise a large part.
Not only taxes on wealth and profit would have to be multiplied, but also wage and income taxes or value added tax.
Would there be social majorities for this?
“Hardly,” said Bsirske.
The fact that a majority has now been achieved among the delegates does not initially have any compelling consequences beyond the sentence in the basic program.
The member of the Bundestag Sven Lehmann, who had submitted the corresponding application, himself spoke of a "vision".
After all, it is about a program for the next 20 years.
In the Bundestag election campaign, the focus will initially be on safeguarding guarantees.
However, within the party there are already concrete considerations as to how a basic income can also be achieved.
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The spectrum became clear in the summer when the Green Network Basic Income - according to its own statements a “loose association of members who are primarily committed to the Green Party” - organized a digital series of discussions on the subject.
On a total of ten dates it was about what the BGE should do and how it should be implemented.
Financial expert Paus, for example, outlined in one of the rounds how a negative income tax could lead to a basic income.
"I couldn't do it without blushing"
In addition, there are also extensive attempts in other parts of the population to promote the idea of unconditional payment for everyone in Germany.
The first pilot project recently started in Germany to find out how a UBI changes society.
It was initiated by the “Mein Grundeinkommen” association and scientists from the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW).
Around 120 people receive unconditional 1200 euros per month for three years.
In the first step, the researchers want to find out the individual effects of the payment.
These are checked with a comparison group.
Two further studies will then focus on financial feasibility.
Over two million people applied to take part in the project.
Those responsible are currently checking the data and selecting the participants.
In January, applicants should find out by email whether they were shortlisted or not.
According to the initiators, the project is financed by more than 150,000 donors.
The different actors definitely see themselves on a common mission.
Green politician Lehmann referred to the pilot project at the party congress.
The responsible DIW researcher Jürgen Schupp, in turn, congratulated the Greens on their BGE decision.
"Congratulations - a small but nice sentence," he wrote on Twitter.
Even if the Greens agree on a BGE concept in the future, political implementation will likely be difficult.
The other parties reject the idea of such unconditional payment or at least disagree internally.
Kai Whittaker, labor market expert at the CDU, for example, showed a lack of understanding for the green basic income idea without means testing.
He was excited to see how they want to sell this to the working population, he wrote on Twitter and added: "I couldn't do it without blushing."