Born in Ilbesheim, near Landau, Palatinate, his parents were Peter Hoffmann and Maria Eva, née Keller. He attended the Gymnasium in Landau, and, having completed his studies at the teaching seminary, served as a school teacher in Kaiserslautern from 1887. He married Luise Ackermann in 1892. Between 1899 and 1904, Hoffmann was a member of the Kaiserslautern city council, seconded by the liberal German People's Party. In 1907, he joined the Social Democrats and was elected deputy of the Bavarian Landtag the next year; his candidacy earned him disciplinary proceedings and he finally had to quit public service. In 1910 he returned into the Kaiserslautern city council and from 1912 he held the position of second mayor. In the same year, he was elected to the German Reichstag parliament. After the German Revolution of 1918–19 and the establishment of the People's State of Bavaria, he served as Bavarian Minister of Education under Minister-PresidentKurt Eisner. During his tenure as Minister of Education, he removed the Bavarian schooling system from the supervision of the Catholic Church. After Eisner's assassination he succeeded him as minister-president of the People's State of Bavaria on 17 March 1919 as the first freely elected Bavarian Minister President. Ousted from Munich by the forces of the Bavarian Soviet Republic and the localworker's council led by Hoffmann's former party fellow Ernst Niekisch, the parliament and government evaded to Bamberg in April 1919, where Hoffmann took part in the working out of the Bavarian Constitution. After his government had Munich occupied by Reichswehr troops and paramilitary Freikorps units, Hoffmann and his cabinet were able to return in May 1919. However, on 14 March 1920, Hoffmann resigned and was succeeded by Gustav von Kahr, after he was forced out of office by the Bavarian Civil Guards and Freikorps forces. Hoffmann returned to Kaiserslautern. After standing unsuccessfully for Mayor of Ludwigshafen, he again tried to pursue his teaching career. Nevertheless, he was dismissed on charges of collaboration during the Allied occupation of the Rhineland. At least, Hoffmann retained his Reichstag mandate until his death in 1930. All pension claims raised by his widow were denied by the Bavarian government.
