PARTIES / WEIMAR CONSTITUTION Flashcards
WHEN were the elections for the constituent assembly held?
19th January 1919
WHAT is a constituent assembly?
An elected body assembled for the purpose of drafting or revising a constitution
WHICH party boycotted the constituent assembly elections?
The KPD
WHAT percentage of voters voted for pro-Weimar parties in the 1919 constituent assembly?
77%
WHO were elected as first president and chancellor of the Weimar Republic?
President: Friedrich Ebert
Chancellor: Philipp Scheidemann (although technically Ebert was the first Chancellor of the republic)
WHAT was the turnout for the 1919 elections?
83%
WHICH parties were in the first coalition government of the Weimar Republic (1919)?
The SPD, DDP and ZP
WHAT were the main left wing parties of the Weimar Republic?
- SPD (Social Democratic Party): moderate
- USPD (Independent Social Democratic Party): radical
- KPD (Spartacist League): communists
WHAT were the main centre parties of the Weimar Republic?
- Z (Centre Party / Zentrum): Catholic
- DDP (German Democratic Party): liberal, Catholic
WHAT were the main right wing parties of the Weimar Republic?
- DNVP (German National People’s Party): nationalist
- DVP (German People’s Party): more liberal right-leaning party
HOW MANY members did the Spartacists have in 1918?
Roughly 3000
WHAT is proportional representation?
A voting system used in the Weimar Republic where the percentage of votes a party receives is proportional to the number of seats they have in the Reichstag
WHAT was Article 48?
Allowed the President to make laws in state of emergency. The Reichstag could revoke these measures, but they often did not.
WHO could vote in elections in the Weimar Republic?
Everyone over 20 years old (men and women)
HOW often did the electorate vote for the members of the Reichstag and the President?
Reichstag elections: every 4 years
Presidential elections: every 7 years