Philipp Raulfs: New district administrator of Gifhorn elected with a clear majority!

Philipp Raulfs: New district administrator of Gifhorn elected with a clear majority!

A new wind is blowing in the Gifhorn district! Philipp Raulfs from the SPD was elected as the new district administrator in the first round of voting on October 28, 2025. With a whopping 53.6 percent of the vote, he clearly prevailed against his competitors, who stood in the elections as part of an early election. The original incumbent, Tobias Heilmann, whose sudden death in May this year made the elections necessary, leaves a large gap in the political structure.

The election results show that his main rival, Telse Dirksmeyer-Vielhauer of the CDU, received 25.4 percent, while Stefan Marzischewski-Drewes of the AfD received 18.99 percent. Marion Mäding from BSW was only able to assert herself to a very small extent with 2 percent of the votes.

About the new district administrator

Philipp Raulfs, a 34-year-old native of Gifhorn, brings a breath of fresh air into the district's political landscape. After studying mechanical engineering, he made a name for himself as a member of the Lower Saxony state parliament in 2017, where he was responsible for budget policy for the SPD parliamentary group. Raulfs has also been mayor of the municipality of Hillerse since 2021 and has more than just a good knack for politics. His experience as a district council member and chairman of the Gifhorn SPD should be of great benefit to him in his new role.

“I didn’t expect an absolute majority in the first round of voting,” admitted Raulfs in his first reaction to the election. He will bear the trust that voters have placed in him with great responsibility. He must now resign both his mandate in the state parliament and his office as honorary mayor, which gives Andrea Kötter (SPD) the opportunity to take over his seat in the state parliament.

Future challenges

Raulfs' first steps as district administrator will certainly be characterized by close cooperation with the employees in the district hall. The focus is particularly on the upcoming budget deliberations for 2026, which are due to be passed in mid-December. This task should not be underestimated, especially in the current political and economic situation.

Voter turnout was 48.7 percent, which shows that citizens' interest in local issues remains high. This is particularly important because the next regular local elections in Lower Saxony are not due for another five years. Currently, elections for municipal representatives are planned every five years, as landeswahlleiter.niedersachsen.de describes.

The political course in the Gifhorn district has been reset. Raulfs' election victory is seen as a signal of departure for the whole of southeast Lower Saxony, as SPD member of the Bundestag Christos Pantazis also noted. The region can look forward to the coming years as Raulfs builds on the legacy of Tobias Heilmann - a politician who was valued as down-to-earth and approachable.

The final election results will be determined by the district election committee on Monday, but it is already clear that a new chapter in the district's politics has begun with Philipp Raulfs. The challenges that lie ahead are certainly not small, but the anticipation of positive changes in the region is palpable. [ndrniedersachsen.de].

We can be curious to see how the political landscape in Gifhorn will develop under his leadership!