Brandenburg reinvented: A fresh perspective on the historical German region. - The AfD secures victories in Brandenburg's regional polls for the first time.
For the first time, the conservative AfD has won the municipal elections in Brandenburg, with a remarkable increase of 9.8 percentage points from the previous election, according to state election commissioner Herbert Trimbach. This move catapulted the AfD to adominant 25.7% share of the votes. The ruling CDU remained in second place, but with a marginal improvement of 1 percentage point to 19.3%. The SPD came in third with 16.6%, losing 1.1 percentage points from 2019. The party that's given the responsibility of governing Brandenburg since 1990 wasn't without response, with SPD Secretary General David Kolesnik remarking that his party remained 'stable' amidst such unfavorable conditions.
The far-left party, The Left, registered a significant drop, from 14.1% in 2019 to 7.8% in 2023. The Greens, who've been holding the reins in Brandenburg, had a sharp decline from 11.1% to just 6.7% of the votes. The Free Voters, in contrast, witnessed a nominal rise of 1.1 percentage points, standing at 7.4%. In a lesser-known subdivision, the Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht, which didn't field candidates under their name in the municipal elections, partnered with local alliances to steal the spotlight.
The municipal elections saw over 2.1 million citizens in Brandenburg hitting the polls, resulting in a significant 66.1% voter turnout, marking an increase of 4% on the previous data. This was thanks, in part, to aflexible rule that allows election officials to postpone the results to the next day, a privilege that was unavailable five years ago. Several cities and municipalities made use of this leniency.
In stark contrast to AfD's winning ground in Brandenburg, only in Potsdam and Potsdam-Mittelmark were they unable to take ahold on the municipal parliaments. Here, the SPD and the CDU won in their respective localities, although the situation was tense and watched closely. What stood out in this contest was in the state capital Potsdam and the district of Potsdam-Mittelmark, the AF didn't lead in elections for the municipal parliaments. The SPD maintained their top place in Potsdam, despite an ongoing controversy about free VIP tickets for sports events for Mayor Mike Schubert. And in Potsdam-Mittelmark, the CDU unquestionablylead.
In Cottbus and Spree-Neiße, though, the train stopped for the AfD. The party surged in the municipal elections in Spree-Neiße, reaching a powerful 38.2% - a gain of 11.6% compared to five years prior. The CDU followed it, seting for the soild second place. And in terms of Cottbus, the AfD's position strengthened considerably, hitting 29.2%, almost a 7 percentage point increase from the earlier election. The SPD settled in second position here, also gaining 4 percentage points. Cottbus has been governed by an SPD mayor since 2022, in the person of Tobias Schick.
In conclusion, the recent municipal elections in Brandenburg have shown a major shift with the AfD leading the way, alongside the leap in voter turnout, and a large number of cities delaying declaration of results till the next day. It remains to be seen how these changes will impact the forthcoming state election campaign.
