1985 Besmenian presidential election

1985 Besmenian presidential election

24 February 1985 (first round) 10 March 1985 (second round)
Turnout	80,7% (first round) 79,8% (second round)
Candidate Otto Schulz Manfred von Henning Party FBBP Independent Percentage 60,5% 39,5%

The 1985 Besmenian presidential election took place on 24 February 1985 and on 10 March 1985.

President Erwin Pohl, who has been in office since 1973, was not allowed to stand for a second re-election. In the first ballot, with a turnout of 84.7%, Otto Schulz with 37.8% and Manfred von Henning with 27.7% of the valid votes qualified for the runoff election. In the runoff election on March 10, 1985 Otto Schulz was able to prevail with 60.5% against Manfred von Henning with 39.3% of the valid votes. Schulz was sworn in as the 9th President of Besmenia on April 5, 1985.

Background

Erwin Pohl, who had been president since 1973 at the time of the election, was not allowed to run for a third term.

Electoral system

The President of Besmenia is directly elected by the population once every six years. The election is held under a two-round system; if no candidate receives more than 50% of votes cast in the first round, then a second ballot occurs in which only those two candidates who received the greatest number of votes in the first round may stand.

Candidates

FBBP

A few months before the election, there were increasing advocates within the FBBP that the popular Prime Minister Martin Beiter should run for this office himself. Beiter turned down a candidacy for the office of president because the president's powers did not seem broad enough to him. On June 13, 1984, former First Vice President of the Federal Chamber and then Federal Minister of the Interior Otto Schulz was nominated by the FBBP and SDU as a joint candidate for the 1985 presidential election.

Election campaign

Otto Schulz on an election poster.

Results

Candidate		Party	First round		Second round
			Votes	%	Votes	%
	Otto Schulz	FBBP		37.8%		60.5%
	Manfred von Henning	Independent		28.1%		39.5%
	Heinrich Linz	BVP		16.3%
	Dieter Deckmann	BRP		10.1%
	Bärbel Hofer	GPB		7.7%
Total				100%		100%
Registered voters/turnout