Local elections - New district councillors and mayors take office
Many new faces in Thuringian town halls and district offices: The newly elected mayors, district administrators, and mayors of the free cities officially begin their six-year terms of office on July 1st. For some, it is a new start, as they made their first appearance at the communal elections in late May or in the runoff elections on June 9th. A total of 13 district administrators, 5 mayors of free cities, and 89 mayors and district administrators of district towns will start their terms, according to the office of the state election commissioner.
Among the new faces are the mayors of Erfurt, Andreas Horn (CDU), who succeeds the long-term SPD mayor of the state capital, Andreas Bausewein. Horn and Bausewein carried out the transfer of power in a dignified manner - the CDU and SPD communal politicians were invited to the town hall for the handover.
"I am aware of my responsibility"
Other newcomers publicly acknowledge the challenge of municipal politics. The new district administrator of the Saale-Holzland-District, Johann Waschnewski (CDU), declared: "I am looking forward to the tasks and am aware of my responsibility."
Other new district administrators include Thomas Ahke of the Free Voters in the Unstrut-Hainich District or the former mayor Michael Brodfuhrer (CDU), who now leads the affairs in the Wartburg District. The third largest city in Thuringia, Gera, has a new mayor in Kurt Dannenberg (CDU).
Fourth term for Gotha's mayor
Among the experienced leaders in the district offices are the SPD politicians Antje Schneider-Hochwind in the Kyffhauser District and Onno Eckert in the Gotha District, the non-partisan Petra Enders in the Ilm District, or Christiane Schmidt-Rose (CDU) in the Weimar District. Among the acknowledged communal politicians is Thomas Nitzsche (FDP) in the University City of Jena. Gotha's mayor, Knut Kreuch (SPD), is already starting his fourth term.
Many of the new faces in town halls and district offices will have to deal with communal parliaments where the AfD, which is labeled as right-wing extremist by the Thuringian Constitution Protection, has strongholds, or even the largest fraction. However, the AfD was unable to make an impact in the leading communal offices. In none of the nine districts where AfD candidates reached the runoff elections, did they manage to win.
The CDU was the strongest party in the elections for communal parliaments in the districts and free cities. They received 27.2% of the statewide votes, while the AfD received 25.8%. The CDU thus maintained its role as the communal party in Thuringia.
- In the Saale-Orla-Kyffhauser District, a run-off election was necessary due to the close results, but the CDU's candidate, Andreas Bausewein, was not successful, with the position ultimately going to the SPD's Birgit Bodenstein.
- The AFD, labeled as right-wing extremist by the Thuringian Constitution Protection, made significant gains in many municipalities' communal parliaments during the local elections, securing a strong presence.
- In the local elections in Erfurt, the SPD's Andreas Bausewein faced a challenge from Andreas Horn (CDU), who eventually emerged victorious, becoming the new mayor of Erfurt.
- The Mayor of Gotha, Knut Kreuch (SPD), was re-elected for his fourth term in office, continuing his role as a prominent figure in municipal politics in Thuringia.
- In the District of Gotha, the SPD's Onno Eckert was re-elected as the district administrator, securing another term in the district office.
- Johann Waschnewski (CDU), the new district administrator of the Saale-Holzland-District, commenced his duties in the district office, acknowledging his responsibilities and expressing his eagerness to tackle the tasks ahead.
