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Runoff election in Ludwigshafen: A duel of giants for the mayor's office!
In the runoff election for the mayoralty in Ludwigshafen, Klaus Blettner (CDU) and Jens Peter Gotter (SPD) are fighting for every vote.
Runoff election in Ludwigshafen: A duel of giants for the mayor's office!
The runoff election for the mayor's office is imminent in Ludwigshafen. Prof. Dr. Klaus Blettner from the CDU/FWG and Jens Peter Gotter from the SPD will compete against each other on October 12, 2025. Both candidates were unable to achieve a majority of over 50 percent in the first round of voting on Sunday, so this exciting duel will now take place. Klaus Blettner received 41.2 percent of the votes, which corresponds to 12,943 votes. Jens Peter Gotter followed with 35.5 percent, i.e. 11,160 votes. This reports The Rhine Palatinate.
The remaining competitors were eliminated from the election: Michaela Schneider-Wettstein from Volt Deutschland received 7.6 percent of the votes (2,389 votes), while Martin Wegner was able to achieve 15.7 percent (4,938 votes) as an individual candidate. A particularly controversial point was the non-admission of AfD candidate Joachim Paul, whose legal challenges were unsuccessful.
Low voter turnout is a topic of conversation
The voter turnout in particular caused a stir. Only 29.3 percent of the approximately 122,000 citizens in Ludwigshafen who were eligible to vote took part in the election. This number sheds light on political participation in Germany, where there are generally significant differences in voter turnout. In the 2025 federal election, voter turnout was quite high among older voters at 82.5 percent due to various factors, such as demographic changes, while younger voters, especially 18 to 20 year olds, were also highly mobilized at 78.8 percent. However, from a regional perspective, participation in Ludwigshafen was one of the lower. This topic illuminates Statista.
However, the election campaign, which is now entering its final stages, promises to be a very intense phase. Both the CDU and SPD are working hard to mobilize their voters and prepare for the crucial weeks before the runoff election. Mayor Jutta Steinruck, who did not see any surprises during the election, would like to see higher participation in the future.
In times when citizen participation is crucial for the legitimation of democratic systems, it remains to be seen in Ludwigshafen whether the next few weeks will provide enough impetus to increase voter participation. The city's citizens have the opportunity to cast their vote again on October 12th and thus decide on the future leadership of Ludwigshafen. Meanwhile, the political campaigns and strategies of the two main candidates remain under scrutiny.