Giffey's protégé Severin Fischer: The new hope for Potsdam?

Giffey's protégé Severin Fischer: The new hope for Potsdam?

The next elections are just around the corner in Brandenburg and the political waves are running high. On September 21st, Potsdam will elect a new city leader, as Mike Schubert, the previous mayor (SPD), gave up after a referendum. There are already some exciting developments surrounding the successor to the popular politician. The SPD is entering the race with Severin Fischer (41). The State Secretary in the Senate Department for Economic Affairs was overwhelmingly elected as the Potsdam SPD's top candidate last weekend. As the taz reports, the choice fell on Fischer, who is largely unknown in Berlin to date, but has close connections to the current Senator for Economic Affairs Franziska Giffey (47).

Giffey, himself an important figure in the SPD, is well connected to Fischer and praises him as “one of the smartest minds I know – hard-working, thoughtful and solution-oriented.” This proximity could give Fischer an advantage in the coming months, even if he has yet to make himself known in Potsdam. The SPD stronghold of Potsdam is certainly confident of the chances of Fischer, who has been working as state secretary in Giffey's Senate administration since 2018 - especially since no other well-known SPD candidate has come forward. The prominent figures of the Potsdam SPD all declined. Voters could potentially feel a breath of fresh air in the city on September 21st.

Candidates and competition

Alongside Severin Fischer, the political landscape in Potsdam has other candidates to offer. Among other things, Noosha Aubel will run for the Greens as an independent candidate, while the CDU with Willo Göpel and the AfD with Uwe-Chaled Said have already announced their candidacies. In addition, the Left remains questionable as to who will run for them and whether they will be able to present a candidate in time. The BZ Berlin reports that the political situation remains tense after Schubert's resignation and the upcoming elections.

A look into the past shows that the change of leading politicians between Berlin and Brandenburg has already happened. For example, Jörg Schönbohm from the CDU and Wolfgang Wieland from the Greens stood out for similar changes. Schönbohm was previously Senator for the Interior in Berlin and later took over the office of Interior Minister in Brandenburg. Such changes are rarer in the other direction. Susanne Hoffmann (CDU), who moved from Brandenburg to Berlin as State Secretary for Justice, is one of the few exceptions.

Political mood before the election

The political mood in Potsdam is currently tense, especially after the last local elections in June 2024, which took place in Brandenburg. Here the AfD was able to win a high share of the vote, and the SPD had to come to terms with changing majorities. There were also several allegations of election fraud, which further poisoned the mood. The Daily Mirror points out that the mayor and his successor are in a complex situation.

It remains to be seen whether Severin Fischer is up to the challenges and whether he can win the trust of the citizens of Potsdam. In any case, the political competition will be exciting in the coming weeks, and the election on September 21st will show where the path will lead for Potsdam and its new leaders.