Distinguish election day from the beginning of the term.
The new term begins at the newly elected Landtag’s first sitting. It must meet no later than the twentieth day after the election. The preceding Landtag’s term ends at that sitting, giving the transition a defined legal boundary.
The regular election takes place in the final quarter-year of the term. Five years therefore does not mean that election day and the first sitting must fall on exactly the same anniversary. The test asks for the normal term, rather than calculation of a particular election date.
The other three answers
None of the other numbers is the constitutional normal term.
3
Three years is too short for the normal term. The possibility of an early election does not change the answer about the general rule.
4
Four years does not match Article 34 of NRW’s constitution. Another parliament’s term cannot automatically be transferred here.
6
Six years exceeds the established normal term. NRW’s Landtag is normally elected for five years.
Self-dissolution follows its own rules.
Under Article 35, the Landtag can vote to dissolve itself with a majority of its statutory membership. An election must then take place within 90 days. The required majority is based on all statutory seats, rather than merely a small group present.
Parliament’s term is not a personal guarantee of office for ministers or individual members. Even after dissolution, the previous electoral term ends only when the new Landtag meets.
Articles 34–37 · Electoral term · Constitution of North Rhine-Westphalia ↗NRW Landtag → normally five years.
An early election is a constitutional exception to the normal sequence.
Three words for this question
- die Wahlperiodeelectoral term
- The constitutionally defined term of an elected parliament.
- die gesetzliche Mitgliederzahlstatutory membership
- The legally determined number of parliamentary seats used by a majority rule.
- der Zusammentrittfirst sitting
- The newly elected Landtag’s first meeting.