Overview
- The SPD district meeting was halted after his announcement, and local leaders said they will reconvene and present a new lead candidate team this year.
- Hikel will serve out his term as district mayor and remains co-leader of the Berlin SPD for now.
- Juso and left-wing delegates reportedly criticized his visible role alongside police in clan crackdowns and his refusal to use the term “anti-Muslim racism.”
- The episode underscores a widening strategic split inside the Berlin SPD that analysts say could further weaken the party ahead of the 2026 state election.
- Neukölln’s security politics loom large in the fallout, with supporters calling Hikel a firm opponent of clan criminality and Islamist networks, and the party already reeling from internal disputes such as Franziska Giffey’s failed list bid.