1919 Baden state election

Election in the Weimar Republic Weimar Republic parliamentary 1913 Baden state election 1913 yes 1919 01 05 1921 Baden state election 1921 All 107 seats in the Landtag 54 1,168,432 1,029,038 (88.1%)Grill 1983 17Exner 2016 294 Centre Party (Germany) 39 376,208 36.6% Social Democratic Party of Germany 36 329,317 32.1% German Democratic Party 25 233,956 22.8% German National People's Party 7 72,211 7.0% Government Heinrich Bodman NLP-Centre Government after election Anton Geiss The 1919 Baden state election was held on 5 January 1919 to elect the 107 members of the Baden Landtag. This was the first election in Baden to extend voting rights to women. Duke Frederick II and the Grand Duchy of Baden were overthrown during the German Revolution following the end of World War I. Elections were scheduled by a provisional government led by Anton Geiss. The Centre Party won a plurality of the seats. Background The Grand Duchy of Baden was one of the most liberal areas in the German Empire. The National Liberal Party (NLP) controlled the bureaucracy and politics of Baden during the 1800s. In 1904, legislation allowing secret ballots and the direct election of the lower house was passed. The Social Democratic Party (SPD) and Centre Party grew after 1904. The NLP and Centre formed a coalition after the 1913 election.Grill 1983 12-14 The SPD started advocating for the usage of proportional representation in 1917, but President Alexander von Dusch rejected the proposal. Heinrich Bodman replaced Dusch in December 1917.Schmidgall 2012 95 On 2 November 1918, the government announced legislation to create a proportional voting system.Grill 1983 15 Revolution thumb|right|alt=Members of the Provisional Government of Baden|Members of the provisional government The NLP, Centre, and Progressive (FVP) parties requested Bodman's resignation on 9 November, due to fears that violence would break out in Mannheim. Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicated the same day while the mayors of Mannheim and Karlsruhe formed Welfare Committees. The Karlsruhe Welfare Committee and Soviets formed a provisional government, with Bodman's recognition, on 10 November. Five SPD members, two Independent Social Democrats, two Centrists, and two National Liberals made up the government. The Free People's Republic of Baden was formed on 14 November, and elections scheduled on 5 January 1919.Grill 1983 15-16Engehausen Frank Novemberrevolution im Südwesten State Center for Political Education Baden-Württemberg de Landeszentrale für politische Bildung Baden-Württemberg https://www.lpb-bw.de/novemberrevolution-im-suedwesten live https://web.archive.org/web/20240201011433/https://www.lpb-bw.de/novemberrevolution-im-suedwesten 1 February 2024 Duke Frederick II called this government unconstitutional, but did not contest it and dismissed his ministers. Anton Geiss, the chair of the SPD in Baden and vice-president of the Landtag, chaired the provisional government. Frederick II renounced his governmental powers on 13 November, and abdicated on 22 November.Exner 2016 291-294 Electoral system The election used proportional representation. Four electoral districts (Mannheim, Karlsruhe, Freiburg, and Konstanz) had 107 seats, 36 more than the previous election. Candidates had to be at least 25 years old.Schmidgall 2012 127-129 Suffrage was extended to all male and female citizens above the age of twenty.Schmidgall 2012 127; 129 This was the first election in Baden in which suffrage was expanded to women.Schmidgall 2012 7 Results and aftermath Members of the German Agrarian League formed organizations to support the German National People's Party (DNVP).Grill 1983 139 The FVP dissolved during the election and merged with left-wing members of the NLP to form the German Democratic Party (DDP).Schmidgall 2012 130 Hans Brümmer de and Adolf Schwarz, USPD members in the governmental cabinet, resigned following their party's poor performance in the election.Schmidgall 2012 133 88.07% of the 1.16 million eligible voters participated in the election.Schmidgall 2012 132 This was the first election in which women were elected to the Landtag in Baden. Nine women were elected in total with four (Anna Maria Beyerle, Mathilde Ott, Maria Rigel, and Clara Siebert) from the Centre, four (Theresa Blase, Kunigunde Fischer, Luise Kräuter, and Sofie Regenscheid) from the SPD, and one (Marianne Weber) from the DDP. The Landtag convened on 15 January 1919.Exner 2016 294Schmidgall 2012 132-133 In March, Baden became the first state in German to adopt a new constitution and it was approved by a referendum on 13 April. This constitution gave suffrage to all citizens above the age of 20 and established a unicameral legislature that served four year terms.Grill 1983 17Exner 2016 294Schmidgall 2012 5 #F8F9FA 36 Social Democratic Party of Germany 39 Centre Party 25 German Democratic Party 7 German National People's Party Centre Party 376208 39 Social Democratic Party 329317 36 German Democratic Party 233956 25 German National People's Party 72211 7 Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany 15449 0 1897 1168432 GrillGrill 1983 17, ExnerExner 2016 294, SchröderSchröder Valentin Landtagswahlen Republik Baden https://www.wahlen-in-deutschland.de/wlBaden.htm live 14 May 2021 Wahlen in Deutschland https://web.archive.org/web/20050222183358/http://www.wahlen-in-deutschland.de:80/wlBaden.htm 2005-02-22 References Works cited Exner Konrad Die politischen und wirtschaftlichen Ereignisse der Republik Baden in der Zeit der Weimarer Republik Badische Heimat Landesverein Badische Heimat 2016 96 2 291–300 Grill Johnpeter The Nazi Movement in Baden, 1920-1945 University of North Carolina Press 1983 0807814725 Schmidgall Markus Die Revolution 1918/19 in Baden Karlsruhe Institute of Technology 2012 9783866447271 Baden 1919 Category:January 1919 in Europe