1946 Soviet occupation zone state elections

State elections were held in the Soviet occupation zone of Germany on 20 October 1946 to elect the state legislatures of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Brandenburg, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. They were the only elections held in the future territory of East Germany before the establishment of the German Democratic Republic in 1949.

1946 Soviet occupation zone state elections

20 October 1946
Registered	11,454,837
Turnout	91.0%
Majority party Minority party Third party   Party SED CDU LDP Seats won 249 133 121 Popular vote 4,690,119 2,411,829 2,420,121 Percentage 47.5% 24.5% 24.6%   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   Party VdgB Kulturbund Frauenausschüsse Seats won 15 1 0 Popular vote 284,375 19,149 18.340 Percentage 2.9% 0.2% 0.2

SED Electoral advertisement in East Berlin.

The Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED), which was formed by the forced merger of the Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party in the Soviet occupation zone, became the strongest party, but only achieved an absolute majority in one state. The SED was created in view of the holding of elections in the Soviet zone, as a first step for future political reforms.

In addition to the SED, three other parties participated; the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the Peasants Mutual Aid Association (VdgB). Two other organizations participated but only in Saxony. The SED landslide victory was seen by Soviet authorities as a justification for the development of socialism in Eastern Germany. From then on, voters could only vote for a SED controlled unity list or reject it. The next state elections were held in 1950, after the establishment of the German Democratic Republic.