Politics of Baden-Württemberg

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The politics of Baden-Württemberg takes place within a framework of a federal parliamentary representative democratic republic, where the Federal Government of Germany exercises sovereign rights with certain powers reserved to the states of Germany including Baden-Württemberg. Since 1948 politics in the state has been dominated by the rightist Christian Democratic Union (CDU). However, in the 2011 election the CDU lost its majority in the Landtag of Baden-Württemberg and since various coalitions were formed by the Green leader Winfried Kretschmann.

Minister-presidents since 1952[]

The Baden-Württemberg state parliament building

Since the creation of the state in 1952, the state's Minister-presidents have been:

Period Minister-president Party Coalition
1952–53 Reinhold Maier FDP FDP–SPD
1953–58 Gebhard Müller CDU CDU–SPD–FDP
1958–60 Kurt Georg Kiesinger CDU CDU–SPD–FDP
1960–66 CDU CDU–FDP
1966–72 Hans Filbinger CDU CDU–SPD
1972–78 CDU CDU
1978–91 Lothar Späth CDU CDU
1991–92 Erwin Teufel CDU CDU
1992–96 CDU CDU–SPD
1996–05 CDU CDU–FDP
2005–10 Günther Oettinger CDU CDU–FDP
2010–11 Stefan Mappus CDU CDU–FDP
2011–16 Winfried Kretschmann Greens Greens–SPD
2016- Greens Greens–CDU

State parliament since 1952[]

For election results split by party, see Elections in Baden-Württemberg.


Earlier history[]

The Minister-Presidents of Baden-Württemberg's predecessor states were:

State Period Minister-President Party
Württemberg-Hohenzollern 1945–47 Carlo Schmid SPD
1947–48 Lorenz Bock CDU
1948–52 Gebhard Müller CDU
Württemberg-Baden 1946–52 Reinhold Maier DVP, then FDP
South Baden 1946–52 CDU

Prior to the Second World War and the regime of Nazi Germany from 1933, the largest party in both the Republic of Baden and the Free People's State of Württemberg was the Catholic Centre Party.

The leaders of the government of the Republic of Baden:

Period Minister-President Party
1918–20 Anton Geiß SPD
1920–21 Gustav Trunk Centre
1921–22 Hermann Hummel DDP
1922–23 Adam Remmele SPD
1923–24 Centre
1924–25 Willy Hellpach DDP
1925–26 Gustav Trunk Centre
1926–27 Centre
Feb 1927 – Nov 1927 Gustav Trunk Centre
Nov 1927 – 1928 Adam Remmele SPD
1928–30 Josef Schmitt Centre
1930–31 Centre
1931–33 Josef Schmitt Centre

The leaders of the government of Württemberg 1918 – 1933:

Latest election[]

In the 27 March 2011 state assembly election, the ruling CDU/FDP coalition lost its majority of seats. The Alliance '90/The Greens party more than doubled its vote and its number of seats, whereas the Free Democratic Party was reduced to less than half its former result. The Greens and SDP jointly achieved a 4-seat majority over the former coalition partners. On 12 May 2011, after 58 years of CDU dominance, the new assembly elected Winfried Kretschmann as the first Green minister-president.

See also[]

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