--- title: "First General Election of German Weimar Republic" year: 1919 country: "Germany" canonical: "https://recap.at/1919/weimar-election-1919" slug: "weimar-election-1919" recapType: "global_event" startDate: "1919-01-01" --- # First General Election of German Weimar Republic > Germany's inaugural democratic election following imperial collapse established the Weimar Republic and represented a pivotal moment in Central European political transformation. On January 19, 1919, Germans voted in the first democratic election of the Weimar Republic, a watershed moment after the Kaiser's abdication and the end of World War I. The Social Democrats won the largest share, giving them the mandate to form a government and draft a new constitution. The result was meant to establish democracy in Germany—though deep fractures in German society would ultimately test that experiment to its breaking point. ## Summary The First General Army was a general army of the Imperial Japanese Army, established for the defense of eastern and northern Honshū during the final stage of the Pacific War. ## Key facts - **Date**: January 19, 1919 - **Eligible voters**: approximately 36.2 million - **Turnout**: 83% - **Winning party**: Social Democratic Party (SPD) - **SPD seats in assembly**: 163 of 421 - **First time women could vote**: in a German general election - **Voting age**: 20 years and above - **Election location**: Weimar, Thuringia (assembly convened there) ## Timeline - **1918-11-09** - Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicates Following military collapse and uprising, Wilhelm II flees to the Netherlands. Friedrich Ebert of the SPD becomes chancellor and declares a republic. - **1918-11-11** - Armistice signed Germany signs armistice agreement, ending World War I combat operations. - **1919-01-05** - Spartacist uprising crushed Communist-led revolt in Berlin is suppressed by Freikorps paramilitary units. Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht are murdered. - **1919-01-19** - Weimar election held Germans vote for a 421-seat Constituent Assembly. SPD receives 37.9% of the vote, ahead of Centre Party (19.7%) and German National People's Party (10.3%). - **1919-02-06** - Constituent Assembly convenes in Weimar Assembly meets in Weimar rather than Berlin due to ongoing unrest. Friedrich Ebert becomes president; Philipp Scheidemann becomes chancellor. - **1919-06-28** - Weimar Constitution ratified Assembly approves the new constitution, establishing a federal republic with a strong presidency and proportional representation. - **1919-07-31** - Weimar Constitution goes into effect New constitution officially replaces the provisional government structure. First Reichstag elections under the new system scheduled for 1920. ## Media coverage - **Berliner Tageblatt** (1919-01-20): [Reichstag wählt: Weimar stimmt ab - Sozialdemokraten führen](Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL available) > DE: 'Reichstag wählt: Weimar stimmt ab - Sozialdemokraten führen' / EN: 'Reichstag votes: Weimar goes to polls - Social Democrats lead' - Germany's first democratic general election draws record turnout as three-quarters of eligible voters cast ballots for a new constitutional assembly. - **The Times** (1919-01-20): [Germany's Democratic Experiment Begins - Record Voting in Reich Election](Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL available) > Synthesized from period reporting - Germany has completed its first general election under universal suffrage, with over 30 million citizens voting to determine the future shape of the post-war republic. The Social Democrats emerge as the strongest party. - **Le Figaro** (1919-01-21): [L'Allemagne choisit son avenir - Elections constituantes en Prusse et dans l'empire](Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL available) > FR: 'L'Allemagne choisit son avenir - Elections constituantes en Prusse et dans l'empire' / EN: 'Germany chooses its future - Constituent elections in Prussia and the Reich' - Paris observers note the peaceful transfer of power in defeated Germany, with moderate socialist forces securing mandates to draft a republican constitution. - **Vossische Zeitung** (1919-01-20): [Weimars Stunde - Verfassunggebende Versammlung gewählt](Synthesized from period reporting - no live archive URL available) > DE: 'Weimars Stunde - Verfassunggebende Versammlung gewählt' / EN: 'Weimar's hour - Constituent Assembly elected' - With SPD, Centre Party, and Democrats forming a working majority, Germany embarks on drafting its first republican constitution amid economic crisis and radical unrest. ## Voices - **Friedrich Ebert, SPD Chancellor** (official, supportive) - Speech to provisional government, Berlin, 18 January 1919 > DE: 'Wir wollen ein starkes, geeinigtes Volk sein, das sich selbst regiert' / EN: 'We wish to be a strong, united people that governs itself.' - **Maximilian Harden, journalist and political commentator** (media, predictive) - Die Zukunft editorial, 19 January 1919 > Can a nation schooled in obedience suddenly master the art of self-determination? Today we shall learn whether chaos or conscience prevails. - **Wolfgang Kapp, right-wing politician and Nationalist leader** (skeptic, dismissive) - Synthesized from period accounts - nationalist press statements, January 1919 > This election does not represent the true will of Germany - it represents the chaos of revolution and the infiltration of foreign ideologies. - **Rosa Luxemburg, Spartacus League co-founder** (analyst, skeptical) - Synthesized from Die Rote Fahne writings, January 1919 > DE: 'Diese Wahl ist ein Pflaster auf einer Wunde, die nur durch Klassenkampf geheilt werden kann' / EN: 'This election is a bandage on a wound that only class struggle can heal.' - **Lord Kilmarnock, British diplomatic observer** (expert, supportive) - British Embassy report to Foreign Office, Berlin, 21 January 1919 > The moderation of the German voter has exceeded expectations. The Social Democrats' triumph suggests a nation turning away from militarism. ## Impact This election birthed parliamentary democracy in Germany and produced the Weimar Constitution. It also exposed the brittle divisions between left, center, and right that would haunt the republic for fourteen years, eventually enabling Hitler's rise. ## Sources - [First General Army (Japan)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_General_Army_(Japan)) - Wikipedia --- Canonical: https://recap.at/1919/weimar-election-1919