1972 German Federal Election
The Willy election19 November 1972 · The Bonn Republic · 496 seats, 249 for a majority
A federal election was held in West Germany on 19 November 1972 to elect the members of the seventh Bundestag. In the first snap elections since the resumption of democratic elections in 1949, the Social Democratic Party (SPD) emerged as the largest party in parliament, winning 230 of the 496 seats.
Chancellor before
Willy Brandt
SPD
Chancellor (continued)
Willy Brandt
SPD
Largest force
SPD
230 of 496 seats
Turnout
91.1%
The result
SPD
Willy Brandt · 45.8% of votes · +6 seats
230
seats
CDU/CSU
Rainer Barzel · 44.9% of votes · -17 seats
225
seats
FDP
Walter Scheel · 8.4% of votes · +11 seats
41
seats