Starting a new poll series: What if the Weimar coalition won in 1928?
1928 German Federal Election
| Liste 1: SPD | 163 seats (up 32 seats) |
|---|---|
| Liste 2: DNVP | 61 seats (down 42 seats) |
| Liste 3: DZP | 62 seats (down 7 seats) |
| Liste 4: DVP | 46 seats (down 5 seats) |
| Liste 5: KPD | 60 seats (up 15 seats) |
| Liste 6: DDP | 27 seats (down 5 seats) |
| Liste 7: BVP | 18 seats (up 1 seat) |
| Liste 8: NSDAP | 6 seats (down 6 seats) |
| Liste 9: WP | 24 seats (up 12 seats) |
| Liste 10: RLB | 2 seats (down 6 seats) |
| Liste 12: DHP | 5 seats (up 1 seat) |
| CNBLP | 8 seats (new) |
| DBP | 7 seats (new) |
| SL | 1 seat (new) |
| RVA | 1 seat (new) |
In 1928, the German political landscape was handed a major shock. Despite the unpopularity of Marx IV (Z-BVP-DVP-DNVP), nobody could've predicted that the SPD would gain the republic's largest victory, far ahead of the second-placed Zentrumspartei by 101 seats. Not only this, but the KPD also gained 15 seats and nearly beat Zentrum and the DNVP for second place! Such a resurgance of the left scared the bourgeois establishment.
It was inevitable, but nonetheless, Müller II was formed within 8 days by the SPD, Z, and DDP, acquiring a 6-seat majority. Surprising for some of the SPD membership was the amount of concessions made to Zentrum...
| Chancellor of the Republic | Hermann Müller (SPD) |
|---|---|
| Vice-Chancellor of the Republic | Wilhelm Marx (Z) |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | Joseph Wirth (Z) |
| Minister of the Interior | Carl Severing (SPD) |
| Minister of Justice | Erich Koch-Weser (DDP) |
| Minister of Labor | Rudolf Wissell (SPD) |
| Minister of the Reichswehr | Wilhelm Groener (Independent) |
| Minister of Economic Affairs | Robert Schmidt (SPD) |
| Minister of Finance | Rudolf Hilferding (SPD) |
| Minister of Food and Agriculture | Hermann Dietrich (DDP) |
| Minister of Transportation | Theodor von Guérard (Z) |
| Minister of Postal Affairs | Johannes Giesberts (Z) |
| Minister of Occupied Territories | Joseph Wirth (Z) |
With a new mandate for the Republic, the coalition got to work.
Deutschland-class Cruiser A
Proposals for the construction of a new Deutschland-class Cruiser split the government immediately from the onset. The SPD, which itself had campaigned against the cruiser opting for 'children's meals' instead, found itself split from the onset, with Reichswehr Minister Wilhelm Groener threatening his resignation if the proposal didn't pass through the Reichstag. With the SPD caught between a rock and a hard place, the entire delegation - apart from a few left dissidents, notable amongst them Max Seydewitz and Paul Levi - abstained from the motion. The vote passed 248-90-153 on 15 November 1928.
Ruhr iron dispute
In October 1928, the Ruhr trade unions asked employers for a increase of 15 pfennings per hour for metalworkers. They refused, and made a counteroffer, which was unacceptable to the unions, so they went to a state-appointed arbitrator which made a ruling accepted by unions but rejected by employers. In response, labor minister Wissell declared the arbitrator's decision universally binding and on the 28th of October, employers closed their factories, starting a lockout.
Reichskanzler Müller, after intense debate with the government and party, came out in support of labor, publicly condemning the lockout and pressuring the industrialists to reopen factories using threats of sanctions. Under pressure, the industrialists acquiesced, leaving a victory for workers - but not for employers.
October 1928 DNVP leadership election
With such a disasterous election result, the reign of Chairman Kuno von Westarp was effectively finished. Succumbing to their worst election result since 1919, Westarp declared his intention not to run for the chairmanship, leaving the party in a direct battle between the moderate Oskar Hergt and the radical Alfred Hugenberg.
One article that spread like wildfire was the Monarchismus article of Walter Lambach, a key figure of the Christian Social wing. With the monarchists pressuring Westarp to expel Lambach, he succumbed and expelled him. That would prove to be a fatal mistake, as that would give the Monarchists and Authoritarian Conservatives enough momentum to win the leadership contest handily for Hugenberg.
Young Plan
The Young Plan of 1929, drafted by American economist Owen D. Young, settled Germany's WW1 reparations, establishing a schedule to pay 112 billion gold marks over a period of 59 years. Even though it lowered previous total payments by 20%, the right were enraged and managed to get a referendum. The SPD sided with the Z, DDP and DVP, declaring that the Young Plan is simply the rational option. The referendum failed with only 15% turnout.
1929 May Day
The KPD, strengthened by their spectacular performance in the election, have decided to host a demonstration for May Day in Berlin. The SPD, despite pleading from their coalition partners, protected the march with reluctant police forces as spectators looked onwards to the display.
Hilferding v. Schacht
The government, needing to find ways to fund unemployment insurance, has followed Finance Minister Hilferding's suggestion by reforming the tax system by making it more progressive. This angered Reichsbank President Hjalmar Schacht, who attempted to punish Hilferding severely by denouncing these 'unsound' policies publicly and refusing to cooperate with the Government in private. In response, Interior Minister Severing used his investigations into the far-right to blackmail Schacht into cooperation. Crisis avoided... for now?
The Wall Street Crash
HILFERDING: "We have some graphs here... mass layoffs have happened across Germany, we have seen a sharp increase in bankruptcies..."
MÜLLER: "Dear god."
MARX: "I better call Brüning to fix this mess."
KOCH-WESER: "I better call Luther."
October 1929 DVP leadership election
The republicanism of the DVP died along with Gustav Stresemann. With industrialists funneling funding into the DVP and DNVP in response to the government's actions in the Ruhr, Julius Curtius stood no chance against the right-wing Ernst Scholz, candidate of the nationalists and industrialists. With his victory came the alienation of the DVP left - the most extreme left-DVPers left for the DDP, while some left-DVPers just left politics together.
October 1928 Zentrum leadership election
But before all this stands a crucial election. The Deutsche Zentrumspartei's poor performance at the ballot box has led to the resignation of party chairman Wilhelm Marx - and now emerges two favorites for the leadership of the Catholics' biggest advocate...
Joseph Joos stands on the left of the Zentrumspartei, close with Matthias Erzberger and Joseph Wirth. He is the leader of the RVKAAV (National Association of Catholic Workers and Worker Associations) and a prominent member of the Labor left. Although he has been drifting to the right, he would still represent an improvement of relations with the SPD.
Unfortunately for Joos, one of his fellow laborite rivals is also contesting the leadership election. Adam Stegerwald is a prominent leader of Christian labor and a fierce advocate for unity with the DNVP, aiming to form a 'Christian People's Party'. He also represents the right of the Zentrumspartei, advocating cooperation with the DVP and the non-radical factions of the DNVP. He would represent a decrease in relations with the SPD.
If the vote is too close, the Zentrum executive may be forced to propose a compromise...