1961 West German federal election
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All 499 seats in the Bundestag[a] 250 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Registered | 37,440,715 5.8% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Turnout | 32,849,624 (87.7%) 0.1pp | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Results by constituency for the first votes. Grey denotes seats won by the CDU/CSU; red denotes seats won by the SPD. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Federal elections were held in West Germany on 17 September 1961 to elect the members of the fourth Bundestag. CDU/CSU remained the largest faction, winning 242 of the 499 seats.
Campaign[]
For the first time, the SPD announced a Chancellor candidate who was not chairman of the party: Willy Brandt, the Governing Mayor of West Berlin. After the building of the Berlin Wall, he gained more and more sympathy, while chancellor Konrad Adenauer was criticised for not showing enough support for the people of West Berlin. Adenauer had to save the absolute majority of CDU and CSU, but, considering his age and his long term as chancellor, there were big doubts if he should lead the country in a fourth term.
Results[]
Party | Constituency | Party list | Total seatsa |
+/– | ||||||||||
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Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | |||||||||
Social Democratic Party (SPD) | 11,672,057 | 36.5 | 91 | 11,427,355 | 36.2 | 99 | 190 | +21 | ||||||
Christian Democratic Union (CDU) | 11,622,995 | 36.3 | 114 | 11,283,901 | 35.8 | 78 | 192 | −23 | ||||||
Free Democratic Party (FDP) | 3,866,269 | 12.1 | 0 | 4,028,766 | 12.8 | 67 | 67 | +26 | ||||||
Christian Social Union (CSU) | 3,104,742 | 9.7 | 42 | 3,014,471 | 9.6 | 8 | 50 | −5 | ||||||
All-German Party (GDP)b | 859,290 | 2.7 | 0 | 870,756 | 2.8 | 0 | 0 | −17 | ||||||
German Peace Union (DFU)c | 587,488 | 1.8 | 0 | 609,918 | 1.9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
Deutsche Reichspartei (DRP) | 242,649 | 0.8 | 0 | 262,977 | 0.8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
German Community (DG) | 21,083 | 0.1 | 0 | 27,308 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
South Schleswig Voters' Association (SSW) | 24,951 | 0.1 | 0 | 25,449 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
Electoral Group for a Neutral Germany (WGnD) | 778 | 0.0 | 0 | – | – | – | 0 | New | ||||||
Independents and voter groups | 2,164 | 0.0 | 0 | – | – | – | 0 | 0 | ||||||
Valid votes | 32,004,466 | 97.4 | – | 31,550,901 | 96.0 | – | – | – | ||||||
Invalid/blank votes | 845,158 | 2.6 | – | 1,298,723 | 4.0 | – | – | – | ||||||
Total votes | 32,849,624 | 100.0 | 247 | 32,849,624 | 100.0 | 252 | 499 | +2 | ||||||
Registered voters/turnout | 37,440,715 | 87.7 | – | 37,440,715 | 87.7 | – | – | – | ||||||
Source: Bundeswahlleiter |
- ^a – excludes the non-voting delegates for West Berlin (13 SPD, 9 CDU).
- ^b – merger of the German Party and the All-German Bloc/League of Expellees and Deprived of Rights.
- ^c – previously the Alliance of Germans (Bund der Deutschen, BdD).
242 | 67 | 190 |
CDU/CSU | FDP | SPD |
Seat results—SPD in red, FDP in yellow, CDU/CSU in black, others (moderate right) in gray
Aftermath[]
The absolute majority was lost by the conservative union due to the gains of the liberal FDP under Erich Mende. From 1961 on, the Union, SPD and FDP established an electoral "triopoly" in the Bundestag that would last until 1983.
Konrad Adenauer remained Chancellor, building a coalition between the CDU/CSU-FDP. In 1962 he had to announce a fifth cabinet: The FDP had temporarily left the coalition after the secretary of defense, Franz Josef Strauß (CSU), had ordered the arrest of five journalists for publishing a memo detailing alleged weaknesses in the German armed forces (known as the Spiegel scandal). In 1963 Adenauer finally retired; Ludwig Erhard took over his position as head of the coalition government.
Further reading[]
- Barnes, Samuel H.; Grace, Frank; Pollock, James K.; Sperlich, Peter W. (1962). "The German Party System and the 1961 Federal Election". American Political Science Review. 56 (4): 899–914. doi:10.2307/1952792.
Notes[]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to 1961 Germany Bundestagswahl. |
- ^ As well as the 22 non-voting delegates for West Berlin, elected by the West Berlin Legislature.
- ^ As well as 9 non-voting delegates for West Berlin.
- ^ As well as 13 non-voting delegates for West Berlin.
References[]
External links[]
- Federal elections in Germany
- 1961 elections in Germany
- Konrad Adenauer
- 1961 in West Germany
- September 1961 events in Europe