1925 German presidential election

← 1919 29 March 1925 (first round) 26 April 1925 (second round) 1932 →
Turnout	68.87% (first round) 77.56% (second round)
Candidate Paul von Hindenburg Wilhelm Marx Ernst Thälmann Party Independent Supported by: Reichsblock DNVP DVP BVP NSDAP WP BB DHP Stahlhelm JDO Centre Supported by: Volksblock SPD Centre DDP KPD Popular vote 14,655,641 13,751,605 1,931,151 Percentage 48.29% 45.31% 6.36%
Second round First round Winning candidate by constituency
Second round First round Winning candidate by district and independent city.
President before election Friedrich Ebert SPD Elected President Paul von Hindenburg Independent

Presidential elections were held in Germany on 29 March 1925, with a runoff on 26 April.^[1] They were the first direct elections to the office of President of the Reich (Reichspräsident), Germany's head of state during the 1919–33 Weimar Republic. The first President, Friedrich Ebert, who had died on 28 February 1925, had been elected indirectly, by the National Assembly, but the Weimar Constitution required that his successor be elected by the "whole German people". Paul von Hindenburg was elected as the second president of Germany in the second round of voting.

Hindenburg was the candidate of a broad coalition of the political right. Many on the right hoped that once in power he would destroy Weimar democracy from the inside and restore the pre-Weimar status quo. The two other candidates who were believed to have a chance of winning were Otto Braun of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and Wilhelm Marx of the Centre Party. Both the SPD and Centre were members of the Weimar Coalition, the group of parties regarded as most committed to the Weimar system. Only Marx proceeded to the second round of the election.

The election was important because of the turbulent times in which it occurred and because, under the Weimar Constitution, the head of state wielded considerable power. Hindenburg would be again returned in the 1932 election and would play an important role during the rise to power of the Nazi Party. However, many of Hindenburg's 1925 backers were subsequently disappointed. Although in the years that followed his election many questioned the constitutionality of certain of his actions, Hindenburg never attempted to overthrow the Weimar constitution outright.

Background

President Friedrich Ebert died on 28 February 1925. On 9 March, the Reichstag selected to hold the first round on 29 March and the second round on 26 April. Walter Simons was selected to serve as acting president on 10 March. This was the first direct election of the president.^[2]

Electoral system

During the Weimar Republic, the law provided for a modified two-round system, such that if no candidate received an absolute majority of votes (i.e. more than half) in the first round of a presidential election then a second ballot would occur in which the candidate with a plurality of votes would be deemed elected. It was permitted for a group to nominate an alternative candidate in the second round.

Candidates

First round

The Communist Party (KPD) was the first party to nominate a candidate. The central committee selected Ernst Thälmann on 3 March. Karl Jarres was nominated as the joint candidate of the German People's Party (DVP) and German National People's Party (DNVP) on 12 March.^[3]

Loebell-Ausschutz, a right-wing committee with representatives from the DVP, DNVP, and Bavarian parties, considered supporting the Centre, but only if Adam Stegerwald was nominated. The German Democratic Party (DDP) suggested that Loebell-Ausschutz and Social Democratic Party (SPD) could support Simons. Loebell-Ausschutz invited the DDP and Centre to a conference to discuss the presidential nomination. The right-wing refused to support Simons and Wilhelm Marx while the DDP refused to support Jares. Otto Gessler was proposed as a compromise candidate, but this failed.^[4]

Most right-wing völkisch movement parties supported Jarres as a compromise candidate, but Adolf Hitler had the Nazi Party support Ludendorff. Hitler later supported Hidenburg. Hitler later punished the völkisch parties that opposed his decision and issued an order in May 1925 prohibiting Nazis from working with them.^[5]

Otto Braun, the SPD's candidate, was a former Minister-President of Prussia and a well known and respected figure. The Centre Party's candidate, Wilhelm Marx, was the chair of the party and a former chancellor. The other significant candidates was Willy Hellpach of the DDP. The German Völkisch Freedom Party (DVFP) put forward Erich Ludendorff but secured only a negligible share of the vote.

Second round

The Centre renominated Marx for the second round and he received the support of the DDP and SPD. Marx was made the candidate of the Volksblock on 3 April.^[6]

On 1 April, the DVP's executive committee unanimously endorsed Jarres. Paul von Hindenburg, who twice declined to run, announced his candidacy on 8 April, after being convinced by Alfred von Tirpitz. The Bavarian People's Party endorsed him and strongly promoted his candidacy.^[7]

Results

The first ballot was held on 29 March, with a turnout of 68.9%. Although Jarres received the most votes in the first round, he was well short of a majority. He subsequently withdrew in favour of Hindenburg, who was a committed monarchist and popular former general. Although Hindenburg had no interest in seeking public office and was especially uneasy with the prospect of becoming Germany's head of state, he reluctantly agreed to stand, supposedly only after first consulting with the deposed Kaiser. His major supporters were the German People's Party (DVP), the German National People's Party (DNVP) and the BVP. The DVP, and especially its leader Gustav Stresemann, had reservations about the idea of a Hindenburg presidency because of its possible repercussions for German foreign policy, but eventually came on board. Hindenburg was also endorsed by the German Völkisch Freedom Party (DVFP), the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP) and the Agricultural League (RLB).

On the left, the Centre Party (Zentrum) refused to support Braun from the Social Democratic Party (SPD), so Braun withdrew. The SPD agreed to support Marx (Centre) as the common candidate to ensure the defeat of Hindenburg. The German Democratic Party also reluctantly withdrew its candidate and supported Marx. As Marx's supporters included both the moderate left and the political centre, he was believed to have a high chance of winning. The three participants in the second round were therefore Hindenburg, Marx, and Thälmann of the Communist Party. The pro-Marx forces styled themselves the Volksblock (People's Bloc) in response to the Reichsblock which supported Hindenburg, comprising the DNVP, DVP, BVP, other bourgeois parties, and right-wing nationalist organisations such as the Stahlhelm.^[8][9][10]

The second round was held on 26 April, with a turnout of 77.6%. Hindenburg won on a plurality of the vote, with 48.3% to Marx's 45.3%. The BVP's support of Hindenburg, rather than Marx (even though Marx represented the BVP's sister party), and Thälmann's participation splitting the left-wing vote, provided Hindenburg the margin of victory.^[11]