1995 Bremen state election

The 1995 Bremen state election was held on 14 May 1995 to elect the members of the Bürgerschaft of Bremen, as well as the city councils of Bremen and Bremerhaven. The incumbent coalition was a traffic light coalition of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), The Greens, and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) led by Mayor Klaus Wedemeier. The coalition was defeated as the FDP lost its representation in the Bürgerschaft. The SPD narrowly remained the most popular party, though they tied with the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in number of seats won. The major winner of the election was Labour for Bremen and Bremerhaven (AFB), a splinter from the SPD formed in January 1995 which espoused economic liberalism. The party entered the Bürgerschaft with 10.7% of votes cast and 12 seats.

1995 Bremen state election

← 1991 14 May 1995 1999 →

All 100 seats in the Bürgerschaft of Bremen
51 seats needed for a majority
Turnout344,440 (68.6%)
Decrease 3.6%
  First party Second party
 
Leader Klaus Wedemeier Ulrich Nölle
Party SPD CDU
Last election 41 seats, 38.8% 32 seats, 30.7%
Seats won 37 37
Seat change Decrease 4 Increase 5
Popular vote 115,001 112,301
Percentage 33.4% 32.6%
Swing Decrease 5.4% Increase 1.9%

  Third party Fourth party
 
Party Greens AFB [de]
Last election 11 seats, 11.4% Did not exist
Seats won 14 12
Seat change Increase 3 Increase 12
Popular vote 44,977 36,735
Percentage 13.1% 10.7%
Swing Increase 1.7% New party

Mayor before election

Klaus Wedemeier
SPD

Elected Mayor

Henning Scherf
SPD

After the election, Mayor Wedemeier resigned. The SPD and CDU subsequently formed a grand coalition under new SPD Mayor Henning Scherf.

Parties

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The table below lists parties represented in the previous Bürgerschaft of Bremen.

Name Ideology Leader(s) 1991 result
Votes (%) Seats
SPD Social Democratic Party of Germany
Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands
Social democracy Klaus Wedemeier 38.8%
41 / 100
CDU Christian Democratic Union of Germany
Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands
Christian democracy Ulrich Nölle 30.7%
32 / 100
Grüne Alliance 90/The Greens
Bündnis 90/Die Grünen
Green politics 11.4%
11 / 100
FDP Free Democratic Party
Freie Demokratische Partei
Classical liberalism 9.5%
10 / 100
DVU German People's Union
Deutsche Volksunion
German nationalism 6.2%
6 / 100

Election result

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Summary of the 14 May 1995 election results for the Bürgerschaft of Bremen
 
PartyVotes%+/–Seats+/–
Social Democratic Party (SPD)115,00133.39-5.437-4
Christian Democratic Union (CDU)112,30132.60+1.737+5
Alliance 90/The Greens (Grüne)44,97713.06+1.7143
Labour for Bremen and Bremerhaven [de] (AFB)36,73510.67New12New
Free Democratic Party (FDP)11,6073.37-6.10-10
German People's Union (DVU)8,5032.47-3.70-6
Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS)8,1742.37+2.40±0
Others7,1422.070±0
Total344,440100.00100
Popular Vote
SPD
33.39%
CDU
32.60%
B'90/GRÜNE
13.06%
AFB
10.67%
FDP
3.37%
DVU
2.47%
PDS
2.37%
Other
2.07%
Bürgerschaft seats
SPD
37.00%
CDU
37.00%
B'90/GRÜNE
14.00%
AFB
12.00%

References

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