Andreas Hammer remains SPD leader: This is how things continue in Furpach!

Andreas Hammer remains SPD leader: This is how things continue in Furpach!

The general meeting of the SPD local association Furpach-Kohlhof-Ludwigsthal on November 10, 2025 offered an exciting forum for politics and society. Andreas Hammer was unanimously re-elected as chairman, which indicates broad support among the members. The meeting itself was well attended and demonstrated active interest in local issues.

In his report on the past two years, Hammer highlighted numerous activities, including a citizens' meeting to expand the AktivWohnPark. This shows that the local association is in touch with important developments in the community and is taking proactive approaches. Bundestag member Esra Limbacher took on the role of chairman of the meeting and spoke about the current political situation. He highlighted the need to face the reality in German city centers, as many citizens feel increasingly uncomfortable there.

Challenges caused by immigration

A central topic of the meeting was the problem of poverty migration into the social systems, which Limbacher and Mayor Jörg Aumann discussed in detail. Aumann emphasized that the municipality could do little about this type of migration and called for a review of the distribution practice for asylum seekers, which should be based on the population size.

This discussion is not only locally relevant, but also part of a larger trend. The accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the EU in 2007 and the subsequent introduction of full EU freedom of movement in 2014 have led to a significant increase in immigration from these countries to Germany. According to the Integration media service, around 800,000 Romanians and 390,000 Bulgarians lived in Germany at the end of 2020, which is a notable increase since 2007.

Numbers that speak

In September 2021, around 460,000 Romanians and 170,000 Bulgarians were employed subject to social security contributions, which underlines the positive economic integration of immigrants. Many of them found work in sectors such as catering, agriculture and construction. Particularly noteworthy is the employment rate of Romanians, which is now at 67%, almost on a par with the German population. The workforce also includes around 5,000 Romanian doctors who work in Germany.

The meeting also elected a new board team consisting of Alexander Lehmann and Renate Lehmann as deputy chairmen, Michael Jakob and Karl-Heinz Scherer as cashiers and Winfried Kramer and Iris Neumann as secretary. The organizational leaders Stefan Hans and Uwe Schmidt as well as 12 assessors were also appointed to their positions, which indicates a well-functioning team structure.

These developments show that the SPD is committed to acting both at the local level and with regard to the broader framework conditions caused by immigration and integration. It remains exciting to see how the challenges are overcome and opportunities are exploited.