The Cuno cabinet resigned largely due to dissatisfaction over the way it had handled the occupation of the Ruhr by French and Belgian troops in January 1923.

At roughly the same time, Ebert asked the chairman of the German People's Party (DVP), Gustav Stresemann, to form a new government.

During that time, the government relied on Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution, which allowed the president to issue emergency decrees with the consent of the chancellor.

In particular, the situation in Bavaria – which was moving towards a right-wing dictatorship under State Commissioner Gustav Ritter von Kahr – gave rise to concern over Germany's unity.

[1] On 1 October, the cabinet agreed on the need for an enabling act that would give the government wide-ranging powers not just in the financial and economic sphere but also allow it to increase working hours in industries it considered vital.

Ernst Scholz of the DVP demanded a decree raising working hours in addition to including the right-wing German National People's Party (DNVP) in the government.

Hans Luther (an independent) and Otto Gessler (DDP) were opposed, with the latter arguing against the asymmetry of "burdening wealth by decree, but the working class only by law".