1982 Hessian state election

The 1982 Hessian state election was held on 26 September 1982 to elect the 10th Landtag of Hesse. The outgoing government was a coalition of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and Free Democratic Party (FDP) led by Minister-President Holger Börner.

1982 Hessian state election

26 September 1982
All 110 seats in the Landtag of Hesse 56 seats needed for a majority
Turnout	3,498,407 (86.4% 1.3pp)
First party Second party   Candidate Alfred Dregger Holger Börner Party CDU SPD Last election 53 seats, 46.0% 50 seats, 44.3% Seats won 52 49 Seat change 1 1 Popular vote 1,580,989 1,483,930 Percentage 45.6% 42.8% Swing 0.4pp 1.5pp   Third party Fourth party   Candidate Dirk Treber & Gertrud Schilling Ekkehard Gries Party Greens FDP Last election 0 seats, 2.0% 7 seats, 6.6% Seats won 9 0 Seat change 9 7 Popular vote 278,450 106,901 Percentage 8.0% 4.1% Swing 6.0pp 3.5pp
Results for the single-member constituencies.
Government before election Second Börner cabinet SPD–FDP Government after election Second Börner cabinet SPD

The election produced an inconclusive result, with neither the SPD nor the opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU) achieving a majority. The FDP, who during the campaign voted to end cooperation with the SPD and opt for a coalition with the CDU post-election, fell below the 5% electoral threshold and lost their representation in the Landtag for the first time. Balance of power was held by the new Green party, who won 8%. As neither party was willing to work with the Greens, Holger Börner attempted to continue in office as a minority government; however, his budget was defeated in the Landtag and new elections were called just a year later in 1983.

Electoral system

The Landtag was elected via mixed-member proportional representation. 55 members were elected in single-member constituencies via first-past-the-post voting, and 55 then allocated using compensatory proportional representation. A single ballot was used for both. An electoral threshold of 5% of valid votes is applied to the Landtag; parties that fall below this threshold are ineligible to receive seats.

Background

Main article: 1978 Hessian state election

In the previous election held on 8 October 1978, the incumbent SPD–FDP coalition retained its majority and was renewed for a third term. The CDU remained the largest party, though there was a small swing from them to the SPD. Two small green parties ran for the first time and finished with about 1% each, becoming the largest non-parliamentary parties in the state. They federated into the new national party The Greens in 1980, which ran for the first time in 1982.

Parties

The table below lists parties represented in the 9th Landtag of Hesse.

Name			Ideology	Lead candidate	1978 result
					Votes (%)	Seats
	CDU	Christian Democratic Union of Germany Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands	Christian democracy	Alfred Dregger	46.0%	53 / 110
	SPD	Social Democratic Party of Germany Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands	Social democracy	Holger Börner	44.2%	50 / 110
	FDP	Free Democratic Party Freie Demokratische Partei	Classical liberalism	Ekkehard Gries	6.6%	7 / 110

Results

Party		Votes	%	+/–	Seats
					Con.	List	Total	+–
	Christian Democratic Union	1,580,989	45.62	–0.40	33	19	52	–1
	Social Democratic Party	1,483,930	42.82	+1.47	22	27	49	–1
	The Greens	278,450	8.03	+6.03	0	9	9	+9
	Free Democratic Party	106,901	3.08	–3.49	0	0	0	–7
	German Communist Party	12,625	0.36	–0.06	0	0	0	0
	European Workers' Party	2,377	0.07	+0.05	0	0	0	0
	Independents	221	0.01	+0.01	0	–	0	0
Total		3,465,493	100.00	–	55	55	110	0
Valid votes		3,465,493	99.06
Invalid/blank votes		32,914	0.94
Total votes		3,498,407	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		4,050,661	86.37

External links

• "Final Results for the Landtag election of 26 September 1982" (PDF). Parliamentary Data Bank of the Hessian Landtag (in German). 8 October 1982. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
• "Premiere of the Greens and stalemate between the SPD and CDU after the election to the 10th Hessian state parliament, September 26, 1982". Hessian Regional History Information System (in German). Retrieved 15 September 2023.