268: A Private from Bohemia

German party workers campaign outside a polling place in Berlin during the July 1932 election. Left to right: two NSDAP stormtroopers, then Centre Party, SDP, KPD, DNVP, and People’s Party. (Photo: Deutsches Bundesarchiv.)

Germany held four national elections in 1932: two rounds of Presidential elections, and then two Reichstag elections. The Nazi Party competed vigorously in each one, and in a number of state elections, but while it racked up impressive support, it never translated into a majority.

Hitler’s unwillingness to compromise with other parties made it difficult for the Nazis to form coalitions, even when they won the largest share of the vote. By the end of the year, they seemed no closer to power than they had been at the beginning.

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One thought on “268: A Private from Bohemia

  1. Always entertaining to hear quotes from people being confidently wrong (even if in this case we probably very much wish they had been right!).

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