1958 East German general election

General elections were held in East Germany on 16 November 1958. There were 466 deputies in the Volkskammer, including 66 from East Berlin who were not directly elected but appointed by the Magistrate of East Berlin. All were candidates of the single-list National Front, dominated by the Socialist Unity Party of Germany. The list received the approval of 99.9% of voters, with turnout reported to be 98.9%.

1958 East German general election

← 1954 16 November 1958 (1958-11-16) 1963 →
400 out of 466 seats in the Volkskammer
Turnout	98.90% (0.49pp)
First party   Leader Walter Ulbricht Party SED Alliance National Front Seats won 117 Seat change
Chairman of the Council of Ministers before election Otto Grotewohl SED Chairman of the Council of Ministers after election Otto Grotewohl SED

Like all East German elections before the Peaceful Revolution, this election was neither free nor fair. Voters were only presented with a closed list of candidates (pre-approved by the SED Central Committee Secretariat) put forward by the National Front. The list predetermined an outcome whereby the SED had both the largest faction in the Volkskammer and a majority of its members, as almost all of the Volkskammer members elected for one of the mass organizations were also members of the SED. While voters could reject the list, they would have to use the polling booth, the use of which was documented by Stasi informants located at every polling site, and had to cross out every name, as "Yes" and "No" boxes were removed after the 1950 election. Abstaining from voting was also seen as oppositional and punished. While legally permissible according to East German election laws, widespread election monitoring was not done out of fear for repression until the 1989 local elections.

Results

Party or alliance				Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	National Front		Socialist Unity Party of Germany	11,689,110	99.87	117	0
			Free German Trade Union Federation			53	0
			Christian Democratic Union			52	0
			Liberal Democratic Party of Germany			52	0
			National Democratic Party of Germany			52	0
			Democratic Farmers' Party of Germany			52	0
			Democratic Women's League of Germany			29	0
			Free German Youth			29	0
			Cultural Association of the GDR			18	0
			Peasants Mutual Aid Association			12	0
Against				14,857	0.13	–	–
Total				11,703,967	100.00	466	0
Valid votes				11,703,967	99.88
Invalid/blank votes				13,995	0.12
Total votes				11,717,962	100.00
Registered voters/turnout				11,848,602	98.90
Source: German Federal Archives, Nohlen & Stöver