1929 Baden state election

The 1929 Baden state election was held on 27 October 1929 to elect the 88 members of the Landtag of the Republic of Baden.^[2]

1929 Baden state election

← 1925 27 October 1929 (1929-10-27)
All 88 seats in the Landtag 45 seats needed for a majority
Registered	1,537,962
Turnout	61.4%[1]
First party Second party Third party   Party Centre SPD DVP Last election 36.8%, 28 seats 20.8%, 16 seats 9.5%, 7 seats Seats won 34 18 7 Seat change 6 2 Popular vote 341,754 187,087 74,340 Percentage 36.7% 20.1% 8.0% Swing 0.1pp 0.7pp 1.5pp   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   Party NSDAP DDP KPD Last election 1.2%, 0 seats 8.7%, 6 seats 6.1%, 4 seats Seats won 6 6 5 Seat change 6 1 Popular vote 65,121 62,344 55,143 Percentage 7.0% 6.7% 5.9% Swing 5.8pp 2.0pp 0.2pp
Government before election Josef Schmitt Z–SPD Government after election Josef Schmitt Z–SPD

Campaign

The Rechtsblock coalition formed by the German National People's Party (DNVP) and Agricultural League broke apart in 1928. Many of the Agricultural League members joined the Nazi Party.^[3][4] The Nazis launched their election campaign in March 1929.^[5]

The Nazis won six seats in the election and Walter Köhler was selected to serve as their delegation chairman.^[6] This granted the party members that could not be arrested due to parliamentary immunity.^[7] The Nazi's best Amtsbezirke performance was in Kehl with 32%.^[8] 42.2% of the new votes for the Nazis came from Heidelberg, Karlsruhe, Mannheim, Pforzheim, and Weinheim.^[9] The Bezirk Tauberbischofsheim, which was 81.8% Catholic,^[8] gave 70.3% of its vote to the Centre.^[10]

Results

Party	Votes	%	Seats	+/–
Centre Party	341,754	36.7	34	+6
Social Democratic Party of Germany	187,087	20.1	18	+2
German People's Party	74,340	8.0	7	0
Nazi Party	65,121	7.0	6	+6
German Democratic Party	62,344	6.7	6	0
Communist Party of Germany	55,143	5.9	5	+1
Reich Party of the German Middle Class	35,605	3.8	3	0
Evangelischer Volksdienst	35,317	3.8	3	New
German National People's Party	34,079	3.7	3	–5
Badische Bauernpartei	28,267	3.0	3	New
Reich Party for Civil Rights and Deflation	6,680	0.7	0	New
Christlich-Soziale Reichspartei	5,086	0.5	0	New
Left Communists	1,530	0.2	0	New
Invalid/blank votes	11,888	–	–	–
Total	944,241	100	88	+16
Registered voters/turnout	1,537,962	61.4	–	–
Source: Elections in Germany[2]

Aftermath

This was the last democratic election in Baden before the Nazi seizure of power.^[11] The SDP and Centre coalition government dissolved on 30 November 1932, due to disagreements over a concordat between the Catholic Church and Baden. The Centre and DVP attempted to form a coalition with the Nazis without dissolving the landtag, but the Nazis rejected it and wanted new elections. A Centre and DVP minority government was formed on 10 January 1933.^[12]

Robert Heinrich Wagner was appointed Reichkomissar of Baden on 9 March 1933, replacing the position of president. A new landtag consisting of 30 Nazis, 17 Centre, 8 SPD, and 2 DNVP convened once on 9 June 1933 to give the executive legislative powers. Wagner appointed Köhler as president on 6 May.^[13]

References

1. Faris 1975, p. 147.
2. Schröder, Valentin. "Landtagswahlen Republik Baden". Wahlen in Deutschland. Archived from the original on 2005-02-22. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
3. Grill 1983, p. 26.
4. Grill 1983, p. 139-141.
5. Grill 1983, p. 171.
6. Grill 1983, p. 174.
7. Grill 1983, p. 178.
8. Faris 1975, p. 148.
9. Grill 1983, p. 175.
10. Faris 1975, p. 145.
11. Exner 2016, p. 297.
12. Grill 1983, p. 240-242.
13. Exner 2016, p. 299.

Works cited

• Exner, Konrad (2016). "Die politischen und wirtschaftlichen Ereignisse der Republik Baden in der Zeit der Weimarer Republik". Badische Heimat. 96 (2). Landesverein Badische Heimat: 291–300.
• Faris, Ellsworth (1975). "Takeoff Point for the National Socialist Party: The Landtag Election in Baden, 1929". Central European History. 8 (2). Cambridge University Press: 140–71. doi:10.2307/4545738. JSTOR 4545738.
• Grill, Johnpeter (1983). The Nazi Movement in Baden, 1920-1945. University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 0807814725.