1933 German federal election

1933 German federal election
Name	1933 German federal election
Country	Weimar Republic
Type	Parliamentary
Previous election	1932 German federal election
Previous year	1932
Next election	1936 German election
Next year	1936
Seats for election	647 Reichstag seats
Majority seats	324
Election date	5 March 1933

1933 German federal election was held on 5 March 1933 in the Weimar Republic shortly after the appointment of Adolf Hitler as Chancellor of Germany on 30 January 1933. The ballot occurred in a period marked by crisis involving the Reichstag fire, the Prussian coup d'état, and a sequence of emergency decrees under the Weimar Constitution. The vote produced a parliamentary basis that facilitated the passage of the Enabling Act of 1933 and consolidation of power by the National Socialist German Workers' Party.

Background and Political Context

The election followed intense political maneuvering between figures such as Paul von Hindenburg, Franz von Papen, and Kurt von Schleicher that culminated in the dismissal of the Papenu cabinet and the rise of the Hitler Cabinet. The months preceding the vote saw street violence involving the Sturmabteilung, clashes between the Communist Party of Germany and the Social Democratic Party of Germany, and the collapse of coalitions formed after the Great Depression in Germany. Internationally, observers referenced the Treaty of Versailles, the League of Nations, and reactions from capitals such as London, Paris, and Washington, D.C..

The declaration of the Reichstag Fire Decree on 28 February 1933 following the Reichstag fire curtailed civil liberties guaranteed under the Weimar Constitution and authorized Interior Minister of Prussia interventions. The decree and subsequent police actions affected organizations including the Rotfrontkämpferbund, Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands, and numerous trade unions like the General German Trade Union Federation. Prominent detained figures included Ernst Thälmann and other leaders of the KPD.

Electoral System and Legal Changes

The electoral law retained proportional representation with party lists for the Reichstag under the Weimar Constitution, but significant legal changes and administrative measures influenced the campaign environment. Following the Prussian coup d'état (Preußenschlag), the Prussian state government was replaced by commissioners aligned with the Chancellery of Germany, affecting administration of police and media in the largest state. The Reichstag Fire Decree suspended protections under articles of the Weimar Constitution and allowed detention without trial, while the Law for the Protection of the People and the State was used to ban publications and meetings of parties such as the KPD.

State commissioners and ministers like Wilhelm Frick and Hermann Göring exercised control over regional apparatuses, and institutions such as the Reich Ministry of the Interior and the Prussian Ministry of the Interior shaped access to broadcasting by entities such as the Reichsrundfunkgesellschaft. The judicial environment included interventions by judges appointed under previous cabinets and influenced by emergency powers under Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution.

Campaign and Parties

Major contested organizations included the National Socialist German Workers' Party, the Social Democratic Party of Germany, the Communist Party of Germany, the Centre Party, the German National People's Party, and the German State Party. Campaigning featured mass rallies orchestrated by Nazi apparatuses including the Schutzstaffel, Sturmabteilung, and the Hitler Youth, with propaganda distributed through channels tied to figures like Joseph Goebbels and media outlets sympathetic to the NSDAP.

Opposition parties such as the SPD and the KPD faced repression, censorship, and arrests; trade unionists from the Free Trade Unions and deputies from the Reichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold were targeted. Centre and conservative forces including the Bavarian People's Party and elements of the DNVP operated in a constrained legal environment, and Catholic organizations like the Centre Party engaged in negotiations with Catholic institutions including the German Bishops' Conference. Key campaign issues referenced reparations under the Young Plan, unemployment statistics tied to the Great Depression, and fears generated by events such as the Beer Hall Putsch.

International actors and press, including correspondents from The Times (London), The New York Times, and diplomats from the United States and Soviet Union, monitored developments, while émigré intellectuals and jurists referenced traditions from the German Empire and calls for legal protections rooted in the Weimar Constitution.

Election Day Results

Voter turnout and official returns gave the NSDAP approximately 43.9 percent of the vote, with the Centre Party around 11.9 percent, the SPD roughly 18.3 percent, and the KPD near 12.3 percent; these shares translated into a Reichstag where the NSDAP held the largest bloc but not an absolute majority without allied parties. The combined right-wing and center coalition, including the DNVP, provided the numbers necessary to pursue legislative goals. Notable elected figures included Hjalmar Schacht-aligned conservatives and Nazi deputies who would occupy key committee posts.

Reports from seats in regions such as Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony, and Thuringia revealed regional variations reflecting the strength of the NSDAP in rural versus industrial constituencies, and the persistence of SPD support in urban centers like Berlin and Hamburg.

Aftermath and Political Consequences

In the weeks after the election the Reichstag passed the Enabling Act of 1933 on 23 March with votes secured through a combination of Nazi deputies and acquiescence by parties such as the Centre Party under leaders like Heinrich Brüning-adjacent figures; the KPD deputies had been barred or detained. The passage of the Enabling Act effectively rendered parliamentary powers subordinate to the Chancellor and initiated the process of Gleichschaltung that subsumed institutions including the German states, the trade unions, and cultural bodies like the Reichskulturkammer.

Subsequent measures included the banning and dissolution of parties such as the KPD and the gradual suppression of the SPD through arrests and exile. Administrative actions targeted civil service personnel under the Law for the Restoration of the Professional Civil Service, while legislatures at the state level were reconstituted to reflect Nazi dominance. International responses involved diplomatic protests from capitals such as London and Paris and a recalibration of policy by economic figures including Hjalmar Schacht and industrial groups represented by entities related to the Reichsverband der Deutschen Industrie.

The election and its legal-political aftermath marked a decisive step in the transformation of the Weimar Republic into the Nazi Germany state, setting the stage for later domestic policies and foreign initiatives that reverberated through events such as the Nuremberg Laws, the remilitarization under Reinhard Heydrich-era security expansion, and the trajectory toward the Second World War.

Category:Elections in the Weimar Republic Category:March 1933 events