1871 German Federal Election
First all-German Reichstag3 March 1871 · Revolution and unification · 382 seats, 192 for a majority
A federal election for the first Reichstag of the German Empire was held on 3 March 1871, 45 days after the founding of the Empire. The voting took place under the provisions of the short-lived Constitution of the German Confederation.
Chancellor before
Otto von Bismarck
Independent
Chancellor (continued)
Otto von Bismarck
Independent
Largest force
NlP
117 of 382 seats
Turnout
51.0%
The result
| Share of the chamber | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NlP | Rudolf von Bennigsen | 117 | +13 | 1.125.942 | 29.0% | +5.7 | |
| Centre | Hermann von Mallinckrodt | 58 | — | 707.896 | 18.2% | — | |
| Conservatives | — | 56 | -9 | 524.881 | 13.5% | -1.3 | |
| DFP | — | 45 | +14 | 351.209 | 9.0% | +0.3 | |
| DRP | Viktor I, Duke of Ratibor | 37 | 0 | 343.098 | 8.8% | +2.2 | |
| LRP | Chlodwig Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst | 33 | — | 274.068 | 7.0% | — |
36 further seats went to parties and independents outside the main contenders listed above.