[1] They took the form of a single-question referendum, asking voters whether they approved of the military occupation of the Rhineland and a single party list for the new Reichstag composed exclusively of Nazis and nominally independent 'guests' of the party.

In a publicity stunt, a number of voters were packed aboard the airships Graf Zeppelin and Hindenburg, which flew above the Rhineland as those aboard cast their ballots.

In the previous elections and referendums under Nazi rule, Jews, Poles and other ethnic minorities had been allowed to vote without much interference, and even tacitly encouraged to vote against the Nazis (especially in districts that were known to have large populations of ethnic minorities).

[4] Their removal from the electoral process accounted for much of the large drop in invalid and negative votes,[citation needed] which fell from over five million in 1934 to barely half a million in 1936.

The Nazis also lowered the voting age, in large part so as to ensure that the electorate was about the same size as in 1934 but also to exploit the relatively enthusiastic support of younger Germans for the Nazi regime.