2023-07-02 18:46:47
In the small German town of Raguhn-Jeßnitz, the right-wing populist AfD will have a full-time mayor for the first time in the state of Saxony-Anhalt. In the run-off election on Sunday, AfD member of parliament Hannes Loth prevailed over non-party candidate Nils Naumann. The 42-year-old Loth received 51.13 percent of the votes, the 31-year-old Naumann got 48.87 percent according to the preliminary election results, as the city announced on Facebook in the evening.
Voter turnout was reported to be 61.51 percent. Around 7,800 people were eligible to vote. Only a week ago, Robert Stuhlmann, the first AfD district administrator in Germany, was elected in Sonneberg in southern Thuringia.
Like his opponent Naumann, Loth grew up in Raguhn-Jeßnitz. He is a farmer and was a manager in an agricultural company. Loth has been a member of the state parliament for the right-wing populist AfD since 2016. He has also been active at the municipal level for several years. According to his own statements, Loth has been a city councilor in Raguhn-Jeßnitz since 2016 and a member of the Anhalt-Bitterfeld district council since 2019. During the election campaign, the 42-year-old primarily focused on local political issues. He wants to improve economic development and the equipment of the fire brigades.
In the first round, Loth got 40.7 percent of the votes, Naumann got 36.9 percent; two other applicants were well behind. The gap between Loth and Naumann was less than 200 votes. Naumann has been chairman of the city council since 2019 and works as a department head in neighboring Bitterfeld-Wolfen.
For the AfD, following the office of district administrator in the district of Sonneberg, it is another prominent position in public administration. Robert Stuhlmann’s election victory further fueled the debate regarding the AfD’s current high. It also ranks around 20 percent in Germany-wide surveys. The State Office for the Protection of the Constitution in Thuringia rates the AfD regional association there as “secure right-wing extremism”, Germany-wide the Office for the Protection of the Constitution classifies the party as a suspected case.
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