On August 14, just a few months after the founding of the Federal Republic of Germany, the time had come for Germans to elect a parliament in a free, democratic election. The last free election had taken place 17 years earlier, shortly before Adolf Hitler put an end to democracy. Germany was still in ruins in 1949, with World War II and the fall of National Socialism a mere four years before.

"It was not only the first Bundestag election, but it was also the first free election since the fall of 1932 during the crisis-ridden final days of the Weimar Republic," historian Benedikt Wintgens told DW.

In between came "the breakdown of civilization and the World War II with all its consequences," Wintgens explained.

"So, in that respect, it was a new start for voting, for democracy and for settling into a new political framework that didn't exist before."

However, not all Germans were allowed to vote. Following the war, the country was divided into zones occupied by the four victorious powers. Only the three victorious Western powers — the US, Great Britain, and France — allowed voting, while the Soviet Union installed a communist system in its occupation zone to the East without free elections.

A variety of parties

The approximately 31 million eligible voters had a wide range of parties to choose from. "In 1949, parties still had to be approved by the Allied occupying powers," Wintgens explained.

In addition to the conservative Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) and the Social Democrats(SPD), the parties included the liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP), the Communist Party, the Bavarian Party (which was only on the ballot in Bavaria), the nationalist-conservative German Party, and the Catholic Zentrum Party. Some of these parties have long since disappeared.

One of the electoral system's special features was a 5% clause: Only parties that received at least 5% of the vote could enter the Bundestag. This move avoided many splinter parties, making it hard to form majorities.

The city of Bonn was chosen as the new seat of parliament, though only as a temporary solution at the time. However, this provisional arrangement ended up lasting until after German reunification in 1990, when Parliament moved back to Berlin a few years later.

Adenauer and Schumacher appeal to voters

However, the question remained whether the Germans in the western zones would exercise their restored right to vote and thereby legitimize the young Federal Republic. The leading candidates of the two most viable parties, Kurt Schumacher of the SPD and Konrad Adenauer of the CDU, clearly had doubts. Both urged the people to vote.

"No one should stay home on August 14. Everyone must go to the polls," Adenauer said.

"The Federal Republic in West Germany should be united and form the foundation of German unity," Schumacher said of the significance of the election. "It should give the Germans the opportunity to become an equal part of a reorganized Europe."

Fierce attacks in the election campaign

The election campaign was waged with fierce rhetoric. Schumacher, haunted by 10 years in a concentration camp, called Adenauer a "liar" and said that the CDU represented the interests of the "mammons" and "war profiteers." Adenauer, the former mayor of Cologne, called Schumacher a "pied piper," seized on his anti-church tirades and aligned him with the communists.

The country was still in dire straits. Housing was scarce everywhere due to the destruction caused by the war and the millions of German refugees who had poured into West Germany from the eastern territories. Prices were high, as was unemployment.

In terms of economic policy, the CDU advocated a social market economy. The SPD, on the other hand, advocated the nationalization of key industries and greater state planning.

Reunification was also an important election campaign issue. Schumacher was emphatically nationalist and vigorously called for German unity on this topic, while Adenauer focused more on the integration of West Germany.

A fragmented Bundestag

The day after the election, a reporter for the weekly news program was elated. "West Germany has elected its first Bundestag. From the seashore to small mountain villages, members of all classes and social strata took up the call to vote," he said

A total of 78.5% of eligible voters cast their ballots. The high voter turnout was seen as a broad public endorsement of the new political order.

Eleven parties entered the Bundestag. The CDU/CSU became the strongest parliamentary group, with 31% of the vote and 139 of the 402 seats in the Bundestag. The SPD received 29.2% of the vote, giving it 131 seats. The FDP, the third strongest party, gained 52 seats, while the conservative German Party and the Bavarian Party each gained 17. The Communist Party entered the Bundestag with 15 MPs.

Many people consider the Bundestag deeply fragmented today, but it was far more divided back then.

The long way to a sovereign state

The first Bundestag convened on September 7, 1949. After tough negotiations, the CDU/CSU formed a coalition with the FDP and the German Party. On September 15, Konrad Adenauer was elected Chancellor by a single vote, his own.

In exchange for the FDP's participation in the coalition, the CDU/CSU agreed to vote for Theodor Heuss of the Liberals as President. Heuss was elected to office on September 12, three days before Adenauer.

And with that, the new state had overcome some crucial hurdles. But Adenauer's first official act as Chancellor illustrated just how limited his powers still were: he paid a visit to the High Commissioners, who represented the victorious Western powers and oversaw the new government. Despite the creation of the new state, important areas such as foreign policy and the economy remained under their supervision.

Democracy test passed

What are the lessons for today? Historian Benedikt Wintgens points to current fears of political extremism and the turbulence of a party system.

"Looking back to 1949, you can see how everything had to be reorganized and restructured. And it was thanks to political overtures, political leadership and the political process that things developed in such a way that this unstable country, which had been severely affected by National Socialism and the Cold War, could become a stable democracy. Perhaps the lesson is that things can be fixed through political action and participation."

This article was originally written in German.

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