7. The Nazis achieve a plurality in the Reichstag
In the 1932 elections, the Nazi party achieved the largest body of membership representing the German people in the Reichstag, though a clear majority eluded them. Hitler, formerly a supporter of von Papen as Chancellor, demanded that he be appointed in his stead. Hindenburg responded by dissolving the Reichstag and another election was held in November. Following a summer of heavy street violence, much of it attributed to the Nazi SA, the party lost seats. Major General Kurt von Schleicher maneuvered himself into appointment as Chancellor, which led Hitler and von Papen to reach an accommodation. During the maneuvering between parties, the military, and the politicians Hitler was faced with another problem, which though he resolved it legally it continued to haunt him during attacks from his political rivals.
Hitler had been born in Austria, and was thus not a German citizen from birth, and not legally able to hold elected political office in Germany. He renounced his Austrian citizenship in 1925, but was not able to acquire German citizenship until 1931, when he was appointed to a minor post in the Free State of Brunswick. Still, the fact of his non-native status was political fodder for his opponents, who frequently referred to him as an Austrian in response to his claiming to be one with the German people. While Hitler dealt with the arguments over his citizenship, the SA continued its war in the streets with the communists, and German newspapers and radio constantly reported on the violence in the streets, competing with the propaganda machinery of the contending parties. In the spring of 1932 the violence increased as Adolf Hitler ran against Hindenburg in the presidential election.