1974 Hessian state election

1974 Hessian state election
← 1970 27 October 1974 1978 →
All 110 seats in the Landtag of Hesse
56 seats needed for a majority
Turnout3,264,209 (84.8% Increase 2.0pp)
  First party Second party Third party
 
KAS-Dregger, Alfred-Bild-5037-1.jpg
Albert Osswald.jpg
Bundesarchiv B 145 Bild-F052015-0020, Kiel, FDP-Bundesparteitag, Karry.jpg
Candidate Alfred Dregger Albert Osswald Heinz-Herbert Karry
Party CDU SPD FDP
Last election 46 seats, 39.7% 53 seats, 45.9% 11 seats, 10.1%
Seats won 53 49 8
Seat change Increase 7 Decrease 4 Decrease 3
Popular vote 1,528,793 1,394,123 238,726
Percentage 47.3% 43.2% 7.4%
Swing Increase 7.6pp Decrease 2.7pp Decrease 2.7pp
Results for the single-member constituencies.
Government before election

Second Osswald cabinet
SPD–FDP

Government after election

Third Osswald cabinet
SPD–FDP

The 1974 Hessian state election was held on 27 October 1974 to elect the 8th Landtag of Hesse. The outgoing government was a coalition of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and Free Democratic Party (FDP) led by Minister-President Albert Osswald.

The opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU) achieved a significant victory by becoming the largest party in Hesse for the first time. The state had long been considered a stronghold of the SPD. Despite this, the SPD and FDP retained a narrow majority between them and renewed their coalition for a second term.