Election campaign in Nuthetal: Two candidates are fighting for the mayor's seat!

Election campaign in Nuthetal: Two candidates are fighting for the mayor's seat!

A turning point is coming in the small community of Nuthetal: a new mayor will be elected on May 10, 2026. The incumbent mayor Ute Hustig from the Left has decided not to run for a third term. With the clear announcement “16 years are enough,” she is paving the way for a breath of fresh air and wants to concentrate entirely on the concerns of the community in the last months of her term in office. The citizens of Nuthetal will certainly find great understanding in this.

It looks like there are already two candidates in the starting blocks. On the one hand, we have Stefan Schneider from the voters' association “Citizens for Nuthetal”, who is already involved as chairman of the Nuthetal sustainability advisory board and works on the environmental committee. His goal is to get in touch with citizens at an early stage in order to better understand their concerns. On the other side, Daniel Hotescheck from the CDU presents himself. The deputy group leader in the local council would also like to seek direct exchange with citizens in order to record their opinions and needs.

Candidates in focus

Both candidates bring a lot of commitment. Schneider focuses heavily on environmental issues, while Hotescheck focuses on education, demographic change and affordable housing. He also emphasizes the importance of volunteering and club life for the community and would like to create better conditions for this. It is striking that, despite his CDU affiliation, Hotescheck describes himself as non-party and identifies closely with the party's basic values.

Ute Hustig didn't know how to beat her in the last election: in the main election on August 29, 2025, she received 36.5% of the vote. Her main opponent Rainer vom Lehn, a non-party candidate supported by the CDU and the Greens, achieved 25.1%. In an exciting race, Monika Zeeb from the SPD was only narrowly defeated. A few more votes and the election story would have been different.

Voter turnout and more

A total of 7,368 citizens eligible to vote can take part in the local elections. A notable trend can be seen in postal voting, as over 900 voters have already submitted their applications, an increase of 200 compared to the last election. The election will take place in several polling stations, including the Institute for Grain Processing and the Bergholz-Rehbrücke elementary school.

The legal framework that the Basic Law provides for local elections in Germany is also interesting. These are characterized by general, free, equal and secret elections, which enable citizens to have a fair say. Such a framework is also being created in Nuthetal. The new mayor could take office as early as October 1st after Gerhard Ling, who has been in office for over 20 years, asked for early retirement.

Voter turnout for the main election was 46.4%, an impeccable figure, even if turnout in the 2008 local elections was even higher. Citizens are in demand and they should not allow themselves to be deterred from the opportunity to have a say. Voter turnout is not just a number, but an expression of citizens' democratic commitment.

Especially in today's world, when the issues of environmental protection, social inclusion and affordable housing are becoming more and more pressing, it is important to make your choice carefully. The coming months will show who has the best ideas to make Nuthetal fit for the future.

Stay tuned for local news and the latest information on the election and other topics.