Overview

• On June 20, 2025, the SPD formally endorsed Axel von der Ohe as its candidate for the 2026 Oberbürgermeister election in Hannover.
• As the city’s finance and ordnance councilor and first city councilor, von der Ohe will directly oppose his superior, Mayor Belit Onay of the Greens.
• He promises targeted investments in roads, cycling paths, kindergartens, schools and swimming pools to tackle long-delayed infrastructure needs.
• Central to his plan is a large family congress designed to gather citizen input and shape Hannover into Germany’s most family-friendly city.
• The CDU has criticized his nomination as a continuation of the status quo and is set to announce its own mayoral candidate in late August 2025.