West German federal election, 1983

German federal election, 1983

← 1980 6 March 1983 (1983-03-06) 1987 →
All 520 seats in the Bundestag 261 seats were needed for a majority
Turnout	89.1% (voting eligible)
First party Second party   Leader Helmut Kohl Hans-Jochen Vogel Party CDU/CSU SPD Leader since 1973 – Last election 237 seats 228 seats Seats won 255 202 Seat change 18 26 Popular vote 18,998,545 14,865,807 Percentage 48.8% 38.2% Swing 4.3% 4.7%   Third party Fourth party   Leader Hans-Dietrich Genscher Petra Kelly Party FDP Green Leader since 1974 Last election 54 seats 0 seats Seats won 35 28 Seat change 19 28 Popular vote 2,706,942 2,167,431 Percentage 6.9% 5.6% Swing 3.7% 4.1%
Party list election results by state: dark blue denotes states where CDU/CSU had the absolute majority of the votes; lighter blue denotes states where CDU had the plurality of votes; and pink denotes states where the SPD had the plurality of votes
Chancellor before election Helmut Kohl CDU/CSU Elected Chancellor Helmut Kohl CDU/CSU

Helmut Kohl
CDU/CSU

Helmut Kohl
CDU/CSU

German federal elections took place on 6 March 1983, to elect members to the 10th Bundestag (parliament) of the Federal Republic of Germany.

In October 1982 CDU chairman Helmut Kohl was elected Chancellor by a CDU/CSU and FDP majority in the Bundestag, while the FDP in 1980 still was on the side of the SPD. Early elections were arranged. The SPD encountered difficulties because on the left a new party was emerging, the Greens.

A major issue in this election was the armament question after the NATO Double-Track Decision.

The coalition between the CDU/CSU and the FDP returned to government, with Helmut Kohl as Chancellor. This was the first election in which the Greens secured representation in the Bundestag, and the first which saw a fourth (fifth) party in the parliament since 1960.