1878 German Federal Election
30 July 1878 · The Imperial Reichstag · 397 seats, 199 for a majority
A federal election for the fourth Reichstag of the German Empire was held on 30 July 1878. It took place 18 months ahead of schedule after two unsuccessful assassination attempts against Emperor Wilhelm I led Chancellor Otto von Bismarck to request an early dissolution of the Reichstag that had been elected in January 1877.
Chancellor before
Otto von Bismarck
Independent
Chancellor (continued)
Otto von Bismarck
Independent
Largest force
NlP
97 of 397 seats
Turnout
63.3%
The result
| Share of the chamber | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NlP | Rudolf von Bennigsen | 97 | -30 | 1.291.161 | 22.4% | -4.3 | |
| Centre | Ludwig Windthorst | 94 | +1 | 1.315.720 | 22.8% | -2.0 | |
| DKP | Otto von Helldorff | 59 | +19 | 736.826 | 12.8% | +3.2 | |
| DRP | Viktor I, Duke of Ratibor | 57 | +19 | 785.631 | 13.6% | +5.8 | |
| DFP | — | 26 | -8 | 395.065 | 6.9% | -0.8 | |
| Polish Party | — | 14 | 0 | 216.148 | 3.8% | -0.3 |
50 further seats went to parties and independents outside the main contenders listed above.