In NRW, local elections are in September - an explosive date also in terms of federal politics.
There could be bitter defeats for the CDU.
But the SPD is also worried.
Dortmund / Düsseldorf
-
Local elections
are actually
a special case among the
ballot boxes
in large, representative democracies like the German: It's about regional issues, about politicians that appear in the daily lives of voters - and little about "big" party politics September 13th in
NRW city councils and mayors are elected
, everything is a little different.
Local election 2020 in North Rhine-Westphalia: Great importance also for Laschet - and the SPD
For example with the
SPD
: Actually, with its nomination for Chancellor and a clear course in the direction of
red-red-green
, the party wanted to
come "in front of the wave" again. Perhaps one would say that with a view to the corona virus. Only that The election wave of the Social Democrats by no means threatens to show exponential growth. Instead, the proud party has been gently washing down for years. Now all eyes of the Social Democrats are on
NRW
. A flop in the heartland would be bitter.
On the other side is the
CDU
- and not least
Armin Laschet.
The
NRW Prime Minister
wants to be at the top of his party.
But the start of the election campaign failed.
Health Minister Jens Spahn also made a bitter appearance.
An election defeat across the country could also be seen as a vote on the corona policy.
And thus be a major setback.
The choice is also important for the
Greens
.
The party has often been the king of the polls.
But real gains in city councils would send a meaningful signal.
Survey before the NRW election: Greens on the up - bitter results for GroKo parties?
Surveys a week before election day actually show the Greens in particular on the upswing * - the SPD and CDU could have difficulties portraying themselves as clear winners.
But it also seems to indicate that the
race for the mayor's
chair will be
a close one in
many places
.
Runoff elections
could follow in quite a few large cities.
What is the situation like in the main cities?
Here is an overview:
Local election in North Rhine-Westphalia: SPD fears for "Herzkammer" Dortmund - challenger with painful notoriety
The Social Democrats are concerned about a symbolic mayor's office: that in
Dortmund
.
How seriously the SPD is taking the situation is shown by the celebrity contingent it sends to the city.
Olaf Scholz
was already there.
On Tuesday (September 1), party leader
Norbert Walter-Borjans
even came by for the second time.
In Dortmund, the situation for the SPD is quite precarious: the long-time
SPD mayor Ullrich Sierau is
no longer
running
.
According to a
Forsa survey commissioned
by
Ruhr Nachrichten
and
Radio 91.2
in May, your candidate
Thomas Westphal has
35
percent
, and
CDU candidate Andreas Hollstein has
31 percent.
At the beginning of September, however, WDR was noticeably ahead, at least in the city council.
Hollstein, previously the
mayor of Altena in the Sauerland
, became known nationwide when he campaigned to take in more asylum seekers during the refugee crisis.
That's why a mentally ill attacked him with a knife.
Westphal is so far the economic developer of the third largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia.
2020 election in North Rhine-Westphalia: Laschet threatens low blow in the hometown of Aachen
Armin Laschet
should be particularly interested in
the outcome in his hometown of
Aachen
.
The result could not give him much pleasure, however, according to the
WDR
poll
published on Friday (September 4th)
.
In the mayor's race,
Sibylle Keupen leads a Green
- with 35 percent, quite noticeably ahead of
CDU man Harald Baal
(26 percent) and
SPD candidate Mathias Dopatka
(24 percent).
Even if Baal saves himself in the runoff election, Dopatka's votes could help the Greens in office and dignity.
It is also bitter because
Marcel Philipp,
a Christian Democrat, has headed the former imperial city
since 2009
.
He no longer competes.
Local elections in North Rhine-Westphalia: Cologne's election campaign under the sign of security - mayor under police protection
In
Cologne
, the only megacity in Germany's most populous federal state, the mayor election is particularly prestigious - and characterized by a special constellation.
Incumbent Henriette Reker
is
non-party
, but is supported by the
CDU and the Greens
.
SPD opponent Andreas Kossiski
is a police officer - and focuses on security.
But surveys promise good things for Reker: She was recently well ahead of Kossiski.
pic.twitter.com/CffvbGfdOS
- WDR aktuell (@WDRaktuell) September 2, 2020
Reker himself was stabbed in the neck with a knife
and critically injured
by a right-wing extremist assassin during the mayor's election campaign in 2015
.
This time, too, there are
threats
from the social networks, as it became known in early September.
Reker then received police protection for the election campaign.
2020 election in NRW: SPD and Greens in a clinch - the CDU candidate comes from Cologne of all places
The signs on the other side of the Rhine, in
Düsseldorf, are
different
.
With Thomas Geisel there is an SPD incumbent here.
He recently made headlines with plans for a major concert in Corona times - and thus caused unrest even in federal politics.
In the European elections, however, the Greens also performed strongly, with the MP Stefan Engstfeld they are sending a very serious opponent into the race.
A laughing third party could be the
CDU man Stephan Keller
.
However, he has a penalty - he comes from the hated Cologne of all places.
If you believe the latest WDR survey, then there will be a head-to-head race: According to the Infratest-dimap survey, Keller and Geisel were on par with 31 percent.
Local elections in the west: explosive situation in Münster - former partners in the election battle
Münster
is a special place: the Westphalian city is known for its numerous students.
The starting position in the race for the OB post is also explosive.
Most recently, the
CDU and the Greens
ruled
together - but the alliance slowly dismantled itself. Now
Lord Mayor Markus Lewe
and the
Green Peter Todeskino are competing
against each other.
The Greens caused a bang with the demand for a car-free city center.
The SPD tries to use the opposition role.
“5 years ruled, 5 years nothing happened.
Vote black-green "is a campaign slogan of
Mayor candidate Michael Jung
. A frontal attack on both partners of the city coalition. According to a current trend of the" Münster Barometer "of the
Münsterschen Zeitung
, the three candidates will fight the race among themselves. The WDR -The survey sees incumbent Lewe with 50 percent of the survey as a clear favorite - so the chance of the runoff election has above all death cinema.
Local elections in North Rhine-Westphalia: In 2015, Bonn fell to the CDU - now the Greens could take over
There are other omens in
Bonn
.
There, the CDU man
Ashok-Alexander Sridharan
has been in office and dignity since 2015 - after 20 years of SPD reign.
In the former federal capital, however, he also has a prominent challenger.
The social democratic candidate
Lissi von Bülow
is the daughter of a former minister from the Helmut Schmidt era: Andreas von Bülow was head of research and technology for two years.
But a surprise is looming:
Green Katja Dörner
did better than von Bülow in the last survey
.
If there is a runoff, she could become Sridharan's opponent.
And then definitely make the race with the votes of the SPD voters.
NRW election in September: Black and green are also doing something together in Wuppertal
The election evening will also be exciting in
Wuppertal
.
Here the
Greens and the CDU are
once again
doing
something together.
Nevertheless, the race for the mayor's office is extremely close: The WDR survey saw the
Greens Uwe Schneidewind
and
SPD man Andreass Mucke
almost on a par - and at a high level: 44 percent for Schneidewind and 42 percent for Mucke.
The remaining votes in the poll went to FDP and left-wing candidates.
The outcome seems to be open: it could be all or nothing on September 13th.
(
fn
)