Peter Feldmann (SPD) is deselected.

As the first mayor of the city of Frankfurt, he is leaving office this Friday after the citizens have voted their trust in him.

In the referendum on Sunday, 95.1 percent of voters voted in favor of him being voted out.

Only 4.9 percent were in favor of Feldmann remaining mayor.

Almost 202,000 voters voted "Yes", thereby ensuring that the hurdle, according to which 30 percent of those entitled to vote had to vote in favor of voting out, was clearly cleared.

Only 152,455 yes votes would have been required.

The turnout was 41.9 percent and thus higher than in both ballots of the mayoral election in 2018.

Bernhard Biener

Editor in the Rhein-Main-Zeitung

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Mechthild Harting

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Rainer Schulz

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At 7.40 p.m., Feldmann went to his office in the town hall and acknowledged his defeat: "On Friday I will no longer be the mayor." On this day, the election committee decides on the validity of the vote.

"The result is not as desired, but that's democracy," Feldmann continued.

He thanks the people who would have worn him in the past ten years.

"The goal of a social city has not yet been achieved." He will continue to participate in this debate as a "politically thinking person and simple Frankfurter".

The public's trust has finally been lost

In their own words, the magistrates' group spokesman for the Frankfurt Roman coalition took up the deselection of the mayor with "great relief".

"We are very happy that Peter Feldmann was voted out of office and that a political restart at the Frankfurt city leadership is now possible," said city treasurer Bastian Bergerhoff, environment officer Rosemarie Heilig (both Die Grünen), planning officer Mike Josef (SPD), economics officer Stephanie Wüst (FDP) and Head of Digital Department Eileen O'Sullivan (Volt) in a joint statement.

"The clear vote of the citizens shows that Peter Feldmann has finally lost the trust of both the city politicians and the population.

Regardless of the outcome of the ongoing criminal proceedings against him, everyone in Frankfurt now has clarity."

CDU party leader Uwe Becker said this was "a happy day for Frankfurt".

At the polling booths, one felt that the citizens did not care what would become of their city.

According to the CDU parliamentary group leader Nils Kößler, Feldmann should have ended the "tragedy" himself.

"The expensive way via a referendum would not have been necessary."

The FDP parliamentary group leader Yanki Pürsün spoke of a "huge joy" about the clarity of the decision.

"I am delighted with the voters who brought about this result." Now "the normality that we wanted is returning".

Chamberlain Bergerhoff called the result "spectacularly clear".

It was worth appearing together in the deselection campaign.

It was not about the politics in this city, but only about the way the mayor performed his duties.

"Feldmann failed because of himself." Hilime Arslaner, Green Party politician and head of the city council, said: "The judgment of the people of Frankfurt did not disappoint us." You yourself and the city parliament would never have wanted to be voted out.

But you had to act like this

to pave the way for smooth cooperation in the city government and with the city councillors.

Feldmann had had enough time to resign.

Now the way is clear for a "man of integrity and reliability".

For Greens parliamentary group leader Dimitrios Bakakis, the result shows: "Democracy works."

"Awkward communication behavior"

SPD party leader Mike Josef assessed the result as a clear vote for a new beginning.

"The people of Frankfurt have restored the reputation of our city." The question of the future of the mayor hung over the city like lead, now it is a matter of bringing the city back together.

On Sunday evening, Josef did not want to say whether he would run for the office of mayor himself: “We have emotional weeks behind us.

This is not the day to talk about a candidacy.” The sub-district executive of the SPD wants to propose a candidate to the party committees on Thursday evening.

The two parliamentary group leaders of the left, Dominike Pauli and Michael Müller, assessed the result differently.

Pauli accused the mayor's opponents of exaggerating the same accusations and of running a "campaign against left-wing content and positions".

"A left-wing mayor should be replaced when there is a good opportunity by one who is more agreeable to the richer city society." Feldmann contributed to the success of this strategy through "clumsy communication behavior in difficult moments of crisis".

Müller said Feldmann made a series of mistakes that enabled the quorum to be reached.

His end has also been tragic: "It ends in a way you wouldn't wish for anyone." The Left Party will run its own candidate in the mayoral election.