Election fever in Großbeeren: Who will be the new mayor?

Election fever in Großbeeren: Who will be the new mayor?

In Großbeeren, a charming community in the Teltow-Fläming district, the signs point to a new beginning. A new mayor will be elected next Sunday, July 6, 2025. The expected clash is not only important for the approximately 7,500 eligible voters, but also for the 9,300 residents of Großbeeren, who have been left without a solid head since Tobias Borstel was voted out.

Tobias Borstel, who had been in charge since 2018, was voted out without a referendum. A unanimous decision by the local council revealed that Borstel, who had previously been elected mayor in a runoff election as an SPD member, waived the citizens' vote and was therefore considered voted out on voting day. This decision was not made without special nuances: the UGDS parliamentary group leader, Viktoria Borstel, did not take part in the vote due to bias, which further complicated the situation.

Candidates for the mayoral election

Five candidates are running to succeed Borstel. The list of candidates looks like this:

• Martin Wonneberger (CDU)
• Dirk Steinhausen (WfG)
• Bettina Stobbe (Grüne)
• Klaus Meyer (UGDS)
• Peter Silke (AfD)

Eight polling stations will be set up for citizens eligible to vote, and around 1,500 postal voting applications have been received to date. If no one achieves an absolute majority in this election, a possible runoff election could take place on July 20th.

Local elections in Germany

The upcoming election is in the context of local elections in Germany, which are regulated by the Basic Law in Article 28, Paragraph 1. These elections are indispensable for the formation of political will and ensure representation of the people through general, direct and secret elections. In many federal states, including Brandenburg, it is common for mayors to be directly elected, which will also be the case in Großbeeren. Local elections often show stronger support for smaller parties or citizens' initiatives, which reflects the spectrum of candidates in this case.

After Borstel was voted out, Evgeniya Gärtner, who was previously his deputy, took over the business on an interim basis. Her current role could prove crucial as voters consider who should take the helm of the community.

The coming days promise to be exciting. The citizens of Großbeeren are about to accept their vote while the candidates prepare for the election. There is certainly much to discuss and the political climate could change significantly after this election.

For more information about the upcoming elections and the candidates, you can read the articles from rbb24, maz online and bpb track.