German Election Administration 9780231883023

Table of contents :
EDITORIAL NOTE
AUTHOR’S NOTE
GERMAN ELECTION ADMINISTRATION

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ASPECTS OF G E R M A N POLITICAL

INSTITUTIONS

EDITED BY LINDSAY ROGERS

GERMAN ELECTION ADMINISTRATION BY

JAMES K E R R

POLLOCK

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OP POLITICAL SCIENCE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY NEW

YORK

1934

PRESS

COPYRIGHT,

1934

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

PRESS

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

EDITORIAL

NOTE

In the Political Science Quarterly for September 1932 I published the first of a series of articles dealing with certain " Aspects of German Political Institutions". I then said that " not much has been written in English on the functioning of the German cabinet system and its similarities to or differences from the functioning of cabinet systems elsewhere. The materials which follow may be described as a prolegomenous attempt to fill this lacuna. They deal with certain aspects of the period which has just ended. For, manifestly, the resignation of the Brüning cabinet did mark the end of a period. Only the future will show whether it marked the end of a regime." T h e second article, published in December 1932, noted that developments had demonstrated that the above " judgment was not uncautious ". Within a few months Germany entered the Third Reich, and Hitler was supreme. T h e subsequent march of events has been so rapid that the third article in the series — d e a l i n g with the juristic interpretations of Article X L V I I I and its use down to the advent of Hitler—has not yet been published. Mr. Pollock has consented to the appearance of his valuable monograph on " German Election Administration " in this series and to its republication if and when the other articles are revised and brought out together. His study was aided by a generous grant from the Faculty Research Fund of the University of Michigan, and the publication of the monograph in this pamphlet form has been made possible by a grant from The Oberlaender Trust of the Carl Schurz Memorial Foundation, Inc. LINDSAY AUTHOR'S

ROGERS

NOTE

I desire to express my deep appreciation to President Alexander G . R u t h v e n and to Dean G . C a r l Michigan

for

H n b e r of the G r a d u a t e

their personal

interest

and

School of the U n i v e r s i t y

encouragement

in

this and

research projects. J A M E S KERR

of

other

POLLOCK

GERMAN E L E C T I O N

ADMINISTRATION

O

NE important task of public administration in a democracy is the official conduct of elections. In recent years as the suffrage has widened and systems of voting have become complicated, more attention has necessarily been given to the improvement of election processes. Unless public elections are conducted with accuracy and efficiency, not only is the public service discredited but the whole representative system is endangered. Election administration therefore should be subjected to constant scrutiny.

Elections in Germany have been both frequent and important under the Weimar Constitution. They have not been Sontagsvergnügen as they were under the Imperial Constitution. They have provided the means by which public opinion has been translated into governmental action. The political consequences of German elections, especially of the recent ones, have received wide attention in the public press and have been prominently discussed. The administrative mechanism of elections, on the other hand—how German voters are registered, how they vote, how the votes are counted—in short, the election process itself, has received little attention. A study of that vital and interesting phase of German public administration which deals with elections will disclose certain aspects of the strength and weakness of German bureaucracy, and in addition will present a picture of the operation of proportional representation.1 1 The recent amendment of the Weimar Constitution by the Reichstag (Reichsgesetzblatt, Part I, p. 1 4 1 , No. 25, March 24, 1 9 3 3 ) has had the effect of setting aside most of the vital provisions of that document f o r a period of four years or until " the present government be replaced by another." It marks the end of a democratic period and the beginning of an autocratic period in which eleotions are a sort of vermiform appendix which may either be permitted to remain in the constitutional organism (albeit under strict surveillance) or be excised if found to be diseased (i. e., anti-Hitler). Although the elaborate mechanism of election administration will be laid on the shelf temporarily at least, it is quite certain to f o r m the basis of future election machinery.

GERMAN

2

POLITICAL

INSTITUTIONS

I: Control of

Elections

Article 17 of the Constitution provides that " t h e people's representatives must be elected by universal, equal, direct and secret ballot by all German men and women in conformity with the principle of proportional representation. . . . The principles for the election of the people's representatives apply equally to communal elections. A state law, however, may make the right to vote dependent on residence in the communal district for a period of not exceeding one year." Article 22 relating to the Reichstag requires that " the delegates are elected by universal, equal, direct and secret ballot by men and women over twenty years of age, according to the principles of proportional representation. The election day must be a Sunday, or a public holiday. The national election law will regulate details." The national election law, elaborated by the election regulations, has been closely followed by the states and by them applied to local governments. 1 There is thus substantial uniformity in the general structure and functioning of election administration in Germany. There are variations in suffrage qualifications from state to state in state and local elections, 2 and there are differences in the details of the various state laws providing f o r proportional representation. But the whole system is based on proportional representation and the structural organization of elections, as well as their administration, are quite uniform. 3 1 W. Jellinek, Die deutschen I.andtagrwahlge setze (Berlin, 1926). Under the decrees of April 2 and April 7, 1933 (Reichsgesetzblatt, Part I, No. 24 and No. 33, p. 153 and p. 1 7 3 ) the state and local legislative bodies were made over in composition to accord with the results of the national election of March 5. To use the proper National Socialist word, they have been " gleichgeschaltet". See Das Recht der nationalen Revolution (Berlin, 1 9 3 3 ) , vol. 2, Also vol. 3, Das Reichsstatthalter· Gleichschaltung der Länder mit dem Reich. gesett. Their terms were set at four years and they were to be automatically dissolved when the Reichstag was dissolved. Since the promulgation of these decrees, the elimination of all political parties except the National Socialist party has, of course, destroyed the proportional principle. 2 8

See Roger H . Wells, German

Cities

(Princeton, 1 9 3 2 ) , pp. 64-68.

Elections f o r the Provinziallandtage and Kreistage follow along general lines the national and state elections. City elections are admirably described in R . H . Wells, German Cities, chapter 4.

ELECTION

ADMINISTRATION

3

F o r national election purposes Germany is divided into thirty-five election districts (Wahlkreise) which are laid out according to state and administrative district boundaries. 1 For the purpose of calculating surplus votes in Reichstag elections, these election districts are combined into sixteen unions of districts (Wahlkreisverbänden). Each of the thirty-five election districts is divided into polling districts (Stimmbezirke). In each polling district there is an election board (Abstimmungsvorstand). All of the election boards in a city are supervised by a Magistrat or Bürgermeister or Stadtrat and in the rural areas by Landräte or Bezirksämter.2 These latter officials in each of the districts are headed by a District Election Officer (Kreiswahlleiter), and the District Election Officers are combined in the unions of districts under Election Officers for the Unions of Districts (Verbandswahlleiter). Finally in Berlin there is a National Election Officer (Reichswahlleiter) who heads up the whole pyramidal organization. The actual preliminary work of preparing for an election is done in the ministry of the interior in Berlin where the firstf division of that important department lays down with remarkable thoroughness the manifold details of the whole complicated election process. Several highly competent officials who are well-known specialists in election matters build up the national election machinery with an administrative skill which leaves little to be desired. 3 If things go awry down the administrative ladder, it is invariably through no fault of the chief permanent officials in Berlin. Their regulations are so 1 These same districts are used for presidential elections and for national elections under the initiative and referendum. 2 See Georg Kaisenberg, Die Wahl zum Reichstag (4th ed., Berlin, 1930), pp. 147-48 for a list of the local officials having jurisdiction over all local election details. 3 Ministerialrat Dr. Georg Kaisenberg and Oberregierungsrat Dr. Medien« are the best known and most important officials dealing with these matters. Dr. Kaisenberg's standard works Die Wahl tum Reichstag, Die Wahl des Reichspräsidenten, Volksentscheid und Volksbegehren, and Die Wahl tum Preussischen Landtag have been indispensable to this study. Dr. Kaisenberg'« kindly and generous assistance at variou« times has likewise been indispensable to me and I wish to acknowledge my great indebtedness to him.

GERMAN

4

POLITICAL

INSTITUTIONS

complete and clear, that much of the confusion, inefficiency and variety which are often found in the polling places of other countries is avoided in Germany. It is highly important that central election officials, who are experts and not politicians, prepare the details of election administration and supervise their execution. 1 When a dissolution of the Reichstag occurs and the president sets a date for the election, the carefully oiled machine starts to work. The minister of the interior in Berlin immediately communicates with the governments of the various states (Landesregierungen) informing them of various details of the election procedure, and requests them to put in motion all parts of the election machinery under their immediate direction. 2 The various state governments in turn name the various District Election Officers and Election Officers for the Unions of Districts, and notify the local officials to set up the election apparatus as provided for in orders and regulations. This necessitates the appointment of an election board in each polling district by the local election authorities and the performance of all the other matters pertaining to an election. Thus from the minister of the interior in his office on the Platz der Republik (now restored to its former name of Königsplatz) in Berlin, down to the Abstimmungsvorsteher in Bückeburg in the diminutive state of Schaumburg-Lippe, the line of responsibility runs clearly, and, as will be demonstrated shortly, the responses to central orders occur with remarkable precision and promptness. The chart on page 5 pictures the organization of election administration in Germany. The election boards (Abstimmungsvorstände) in each precinct of the Reich, represented at the bottom of the chart, only function on election day.' 1

Contrast these officials, for instance, with the average secretary of state in an American state. See J . P. Harris, A Model Election Administration System, pamphlet published by the National Municipal League (New York City, 1930). 2 The minister of the interior also names the National Election Officer (Reichswahlleiter). The head of the Statistisches Reichsamt, one of the important high officials, has always been named to this post. His appointment is for the entire election period, and he is responsible for any referendum or presidential elections which occur during the period. s

See infra, pp. 21-24 for » discussion of precinct election officials.

ELECTION

ADMINISTRATION

5

6

GERMAN

POLITICAL

INSTITUTIONS

T h e other units of the organization are on duty from the time an election is called until the official results are established. T h e various phases of German election administration can be understood best if we take one of the larger cities of Prussia like Dortmund a n d summarize the various processes which are carried out when the Erlass issued by the minister of the interior is received by t h e local government officials who actually operate the machinery of elections. 1 Each process can later be described in detail. T h e Oberbürgermeister of Dortmund, who is the highest election official in that city, 2 upon being notified to prepare for an election, delegates his powers to the head of the city's Statistical Office, an official who actually directs election matters the year round. T h e Direktor of this office first sets about to put the election register in shape for use. In order to vote, every qualified German must be included in a register which in nearly every case is prepared by officials and causes little or no inconvenience to the voter. In some areas new registers may have to be prepared, but more frequently it is only necessary to b r i n g up to date the continuous file of qualified voters which the election office ( W a h l a m t ) has on hand. This is the case in Dortmund. Simultaneous with the preparation of an up-to-date register, the election office selects the chairmen and vice-chairmen of all precinct election boards, who in turn select the other members of their election boards f r o m among the representatives of the various parties. Election districts and polling places must in some cases be rearranged or created. The lists of candidates filed by the parties for nomination must be verified by a committee set up for the purpose by the chief election officer of the district. T h e n a m i n g and numbering of party lists must also be determined by this same committee. Finally when all of these preparations are complete, all of the election supplies such as ballots, tally sheets, ballot boxes and polling 1

I am grateful to so many state and local officials for their courtesy and helpfulness in aiding my researches, that it is only possible here to acknowledge my indebtedness to them as a group and not individually. 2

He is also usually appointed District Election Officer for the l8th election district of Germany.

ELECTION

ADMINISTRATION

7

booths must be arranged for and delivered to the various precincts f o r use on election day. Each one of these steps, registration, election officials, election districts, nomination procedure, ballots and supplies will now be discussed without regard to any particular city, in order that a complete picture of the whole country may be obtained. II:

Registration

First of all a description of the various German registration systems will be given. 1 A l l of the registration systems are permanent and are based on the police registration system which requires all persons in the community to report their arrival, departure or change of residence to the police. But from this point on, election registration systems vary. At present there is no uniform registration system for the whole of Germany, and the diversities which exist must be noted. It should be pointed out that the rural areas {Gemeinden and Landstädte) universally use the system of written lists (Wählerlisten). Most of the smaller (Kleinstädte) and medium-sized (Mittelstädte) and some of the larger cities (Grossstädte) like Kassel also use lists. These lists are written up in longhand or typed from record cards of voters, prepared from police records, and are bound together in books which are arranged in precincts by streets and numbers. They are kept more or less up-to-date, from election to election, and periodically are made up anew. T h e y are not necessarily made up anew for each election. In Kassel for instance a new list is ordinarily made up every five years. In the rural areas the condition of the register usually determines when new lists must be prepared. The registers are kept up-to-date principally by the use of police records, and the data supplied on vital statistics. T h e system of having Wählerlisten for rural areas is reasonably satisfactory under present governmental and economic conditions. It is inexpensive and as handled even by minor 1 A n excellent brief description of registration in G e r m a n cities is g i v e n in W e l l s , op. cit., pp. 75-83.

GERMAN

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POLITICAL

INSTITUTIONS

officials, serves to prevent fraud and to produce accurate election statistics. T h e system is likely to obtain over the larger part of rural Germany indefinitely. So far as the small and middle-sized cities are concerned, it is probably only a matter of time until one of the more modern registration systems will supersede the somewhat primitive list system. Of course the type of system is not nearly so important as the type of official who runs it. A n d so long as the German civil servant continues to be as able as he is at present, no system is likely to1 have overwhelming advantages over all other systems. In Kassel, a city of 172,000 inhabitants, the system of lists is still used, and although the officials readily admit that it is oldfashioned, they find it economical and efficient. It is safe to predict however that with the modernization of municipal administration in other fields, such cities will in time abandon the Listensystem for election purposes and adopt a newer system. In the larger urban areas there are two principal types of registration system in use: ( 1 ) the system of precinct card files (Karteisystem) and (2) the system of precinct lists prepared mechanically with an addressograph (Adremasystem). T h e first named type has many variations. That is to say, there are many different card systems. 1 T h e differences appear in the size, shape, color and arrangement of the card; in the size of and material used in the filing boxes, some being wooden and some steel; 2 in the method of retaining the cards in the filing boxes; and in the manner of using the cards. T h e regulations prescribe that the cards must be consecutively numbered and also that the cards must be securely held in place in the precinct filing box so that in the polling place cards may not be taken out or inserted. 3 This last requirement is met by having the cards perforated and by running a rod through the perforations and sealing or locking the rod. In a few cities there are both a master file arranged alphabet1 See Kaisenberg, Die Wahl tum Reichstag (4th ed., Berlin, 1930), pp. 79-80. The Divin, or Deutsches Institut fir Wirtschaftlichkeit in der Verwaltung has exemplars of all types of card systems in its office in Berlin.

* Α Buchkartei

exists in a few cities in THuringia.

* Reichsstimmordnung,

section 8.

Hereafter cited R. S. O.

ELECTION

lU3HU3U±ev

ADMINISTRATION

IHOIU

ΙΟ

GERMAN

POLITICAL

INSTITUTIONS

ically and precinct files arranged according to street and number. Ordinarily, however, a duplicate file is not kept. On election day the one card file arranged by precincts goes to the voting places. Between elections it remains in filing cases in the election office where it is kept up-to-date. The absence of a duplicate file seems not to have worked any noticeable hardships, and precinct files do not get lost or destroyed in German cities as has been the case in some American cities. The card system known by the name of its originator Holtzmann is used in Munich and Augsburg. This system is to be distinguished from other German registration systems in that the voter has a part to play in the preparation of the register. That is to say, the work in connection with the Holtzmann system is not all done by the officials. Before an election, printed cards and instructions are delivered by the police or by employees of the election office to the owner or manager of every residence in the city. Unemployed persons have recently been used for this messenger service. After the cards have been filled out by the residents of a house, they are checked over by the owner or manager of the house, placed in an envelope provided for the purpose and signed and sealed by him. The envelopes are collected by messengers and delivered to the election office. There the cards which have been filled out by the voters are checked against the records in the election office, and arranged according to voting precincts. The cards are divided into three parts. The two parts which are alike serve as voters' registers—one for the precincts and one for the central office; and the third part is a notification post card for the voter which also serves as identification at the polls. When the three parts of the cards have been checked, numbered and stamped, they are separated and distributed as above described. New card registers are made up whenever the election authorities feel the need of a new check on the qualified voters. Only six spaces are provided on the registration cards for voting marks, and in practice, new registers are made up before every major election if a year has passed since the last register was prepared. In practice the card systems have met with general satisfac-

ELECTION

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