Bochum I is an electoral constituency (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

: ''Wahlkreis'') represented in the

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...

. It elects one member via

first-past-the-post voting In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast their ...

. Under the current constituency numbering system, it is designated as constituency 139. It is located in the

Ruhr The Ruhr ( ; german: Ruhrgebiet , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr area, sometimes Ruhr district, Ruhr region, or Ruhr valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 2,800/km ...

region of

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...

, comprising the western and central part of the city of

Bochum Bochum ( , also , ; wep, Baukem) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia. With a population of 364,920 (2016), is the sixth largest city (after Cologne, Düsseldorf, Dortmund, Essen and Duisburg) of the most populous Germany, German federal state o ...

. Bochum I was created for the inaugural 1949 federal election. Since 2002, it has been represented by

Axel Schäfer Axel Helmut Schäfer (born 3 August 1952) is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). Born in Frankfurt, Hesse, he has been serving as a member of the Bundestag from the state of North Rhine-Westphalia since 2002. Political ca ...

of the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties For ...

(SPD).

Geography

Bochum I is located in the Ruhr region of

. As of the 2021 federal election, it comprises the city districts (''Stadtbezirke'') of 1 Bochum-Mitte, 2 Bochum-Wattenscheid, 5 Bochum-Süd, and 6 Bochum-Südwest from the independent city of Bochum.

History

Bochum I was created in 1949, then known as ''Bochum''. It acquired its current name in the 1980 election. In the 1949 election, it was North Rhine-Westphalia constituency 59 in the numbering system. From 1953 through 1961, it was number 118. From 1965 through 1976, it was number 117. From 1980 through 1998, it was number 110. From 2002 through 2009, it was number 141. In the 2013 through 2021 elections, it was number 140. From the 2025 election, it has been number 139. Originally, the constituency was coterminous with the independent city of Bochum. From 1965 through 1976, it comprised western parts of Bochum. From 1980 through 1998, it comprised the 1 Bochum-Mitte, 2 Bochum-Wattenscheid, and 6 Bochum-Südwest ''Stadtbezirke'' from Bochum. It acquired its current borders in the 2002 election.

Members

The constituency has been held by the Social Democratic Party (SPD) during all but two Bundestag terms since its creation. It was first represented by

Erich Ollenhauer Erich Ollenhauer (27 March 1901 – 14 December 1963) was the leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) from 1952 until 1963. He was a key leader of the opposition to Konrad Adenauer in the Bundestag. In exile under the Nazis, he r ...

of the SPD 1949 until 1953, when it was won by Franzjosef Müser of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) for two terms.

Heinrich Deist Heinrich Deist (10 December 1902 – 7 March 1964) was as German Social Democratic Party (SPD) politician. His father was a printer who twice became SPD Prime Minister of Anhalt during the Weimar years.Anthony James Nicholls, ''Freedom with Respo ...

regained it for the SPD in 1961 and served a single term. Karl Liedtke was elected in 1965 and served until 1987. He was succeeded by

Klaus Hasenfratz Klaus is a German, Dutch and Scandinavian given name and surname. It originated as a short form of Nikolaus, a German form of the Greek given name Nicholas. Notable persons whose family name is Klaus *Billy Klaus (1928–2006), American basebal ...

, who was then representative until 2002. Axel Schäfer was elected in 2002 and re-elected in 2005, 2009, 2013, 2017, and 2021.

Election results

2021 election

2017 election

2013 election

2009 election

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bochum I Federal electoral districts in North Rhine-Westphalia 1949 establishments in West Germany Constituencies established in 1949 Bochum