Mayor in Brandenburg: Despite the growing interest!

Mayor in Brandenburg: Despite the growing interest!

A certain trend in Brandenburg has become apparent over the past few years: more and more mayors are being voted out. This goes back to the increased requirements that are placed on municipal managers. In 2025, three mayors were already divorced from their offices: Mike Schubert from Potsdam, as well as the mayors in Friedland and Großbeeren. The removal of Schubert, which came about to vote and only 18,000 votes against the deselection due to a citizens' decision with 36,228 votes. The background was allegations regarding its allocation of free VIP tickets for sporting events, which led to a massive election of elections.

The vote procedures in Brandenburg are not new; The list of elected mayors goes back to 1998 when Horst was voted out. But Hubert Handke (2014) and Sven Siebert from Hoppegarten are also examples of earlier voting procedures. Interestingly, these procedures are not only initiated by citizens, but also by community representatives, which creates a high level of democratic participation.

Organizational framework conditions

For successful deselection procedures, at least 15 to 25 percent of those entitled to vote are required. A mayor can be voted out if the majority of the votes speak for it, whereby this majority must include at least 25 percent of those entitled to vote. The reasons for such procedures are usually a poor leadership style, overwhelming or specific allegations such as waste of tax money, explains political scientist Peter Ulrich.

In general, mayors and district councilors have been chosen directly by the citizens in Brandenburg since 1993. The regulation stipulates that official mayors are elected for five years, while full -time mayors and district councilors have an term of eight years. In order to be elected full -time mayor, an absolute majority of the valid votes is necessary. In the event of a lack of result in the first ballot, there is a runoff election.

demographic changes and voter behavior

In recent years, the proportion of citizens who are entitled to vote has also increased that run non -party. Of the 146 full -time mayors, 45 individual applicants are. Despite the attractiveness of the mayor's office, the turnout in Brandenburg is comparatively low; Less than half of the citizens took part in the last elections. This low participation is often attributed to inadequate information about the role of district councilors and a lack of time for the candidates for contact with the citizens.

Another aspect that regulates voting in Brandenburg is the Brandenburg Local Election Act, which regulates the implementation of elections and sets the number of representatives according to the population. The next elections are due in June 2024 and are expected with great interest from the general public.

Developments in local politics show that citizen participation and transparency play an increasingly important role, while the challenges for mayors are not lower. The deselection of official owners could not only serve as a warning signal, but also become an indicator of the future political landscape in Brandenburg Understood.