General elections were held in Liechtenstein on 8 May 1875 to elect 6 of the 15 members of the Landtag. Half of the twelve elected members were up for re-election after the end of their six-year term, whereas the other half had been elected in 1872 elections. The six seats were indirectly elected by electors selected by voters, while one was appointed by Johann II, Prince of Liechtenstein.
Background The term of the elected Landtag was six years, and the six members elected in the 1869 elections, representing half of the elected members, were up for election due to the expiration of their term. Similarly, two princely-appointed members were also set to be re-appointed by Johann II, Prince of Liechtenstein due to the end of their term.
The Landtag's term was characterized by the Baden Casino Company applying for a concession to build a casino in Liechtenstein in 1872, offering the country 8 million Swiss francs. Though met with considerable interest from the Landtag and the majority of the population supporting it due to Liechtenstein struggling from financial difficulties, concerns from Johann II and intervention from the Austro-Hungarian Foreign Service meant that the concession ultimately did not go through. Instead, Johann II granted the country a substantial loan to support the economy.
Electors Electors were selected through elections that were held between 26 and 30 April; each municipality had two electors for every 100 inhabitants. All male citizens aged 24 and above that were self-employed were eligible to vote.
MunicipalityElectors+/–Balzers22 +2Eschen180Gamprin60Mauren18–2Planken20Ruggell10–2Schaan200Schellenberg8 +2Triesen180Triesenberg200Vaduz18 +2Total160+2Source: Vogt
Results
The electors met on 8 May in the hall of Vaduz Castle to elect six Landtag members and five deputy members. Of the 160 electors, 156 were present for the voting. The Landtag members and their deputies were elected in three ballots, with two other members being appointed by Johann II. There were no political parties and the election of members was almost entirely focused on an individual's personality.
Elected members +First ballotElected memberMunicipalityVotesMarkus KesslerVaduz93Johann Alois SchlegelTriesenberg89Sebastian HeebRuggell88Ferdinand WalserSchaan82Source: Vogt +Second ballotElected memberMunicipalityVotesBaptist Johann FritscheBalzers84Michael KaiserMauren78Source: Vogt Ferdinand Walser declined his election immediately and Franz Josef Kind was elected instead. Markus Kessler also declined his election and was replaced by , as he was the deputy member who received the most votes.
Elected deputies +First ballotElected memberMunicipalityVotesVaduz90Johann BirgetzeTriesen87Johann Georg NäscherGamprin76Franz Josef BiedermannSchellenberg75Source: Vogt +Third ballotElected memberMunicipalityVotesFranz Josef KindEschen44Source: Vogt As Franz Josef Kind had been elected as a full member, his deputy position instead went to Josef Tschetter instead with 26 votes.
Appointed by the prince Appointed memberMunicipalityJosef WalserTriesenJohann Georg MattMaurenSource: Vogt
Aftermath The first meeting of the Landtag following the elections took place on 24 May, where Schlegel was re-elected as President of the Landtag, and as vice president.
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Literature