Overview

• The 28 September runoff follows a first round in which Berivan Aymaz led with 28.1% and Torsten Burmester received 21.3%.
• A win for Aymaz would make her the first Green to lead a German city with more than one million residents.
• Burmester has secured the endorsement of the defeated CDU candidate and is emphasizing security, cleanliness, housing construction and economic momentum.
• A Forsa poll finds many residents believe Cologne is in decline, with traffic, the housing market and litter named as top problems.
• Debate over public order draws on last year's drug-related violence and tensions from nightlife and tourism, alongside frustration with municipal experiments and costly cultural renovations.