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1h ago

NRW Voters Decide Record Runoffs as AfD Tests Ruhr Cities and Greens Target Cologne

Tactical voting will test cross‑party efforts to block AfD bids, with Green prospects in Cologne under close scrutiny.

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Overview

  • Roughly 147 runoffs for mayoral and district chief posts take place across North Rhine‑Westphalia today, with polls open from 8:00 to 18:00 and first results expected this evening.
  • AfD candidates are on the ballot in Duisburg, Gelsenkirchen and Hagen as well as Bergheim, prompting CDU and SPD appeals for reciprocal support to keep AfD contenders from winning top city offices.
  • Cologne’s runoff pits Green candidate Berivan Aymaz, who led the first round with 28.1 percent, against SPD’s Torsten Burmester after CDU candidate Markus Greitemann urged his supporters to back Burmester.
  • Procedurally, only those eligible in the first round may vote today, no new notifications were issued, and a photo ID suffices at the polling place if no mail ballot was requested.
  • The runoffs follow a fragmented first round in which the CDU led council votes with about 33.3 percent, the AfD surged to roughly 14.5 percent, and the Greens fell to about 13.5 percent, with socioeconomic strains in Ruhr cities spotlighted by local reporting.