Incumbent Dr. Thomas Nitzsche wins run-off election for mayor in Jena

Dr. Thomas Nitzsche remains Lord Mayor of Jena. In yesterday's run-off election, the incumbent won with 61.6% of the vote against his challenger Kathleen Lützkendorf from the Green Party. According to the provisional election results, the latter achieved 38.4 percent of the votes cast. Voter turnout was 63.1 percent. The official final results of the mayoral election will be confirmed by the election committee, which will meet on Tuesday, June 11, 2024.

Nitzsche thanked everyone who went to the polls and everyone who voted for him. With their vote, they had shown that the continuity, reliability, stability and growth-oriented policies that they had experienced over the past six years should be continued, said Nitzsche. "It is a policy that is very much based on cooperation and trust." He also thanked everyone who had supported him during the election campaign, as well as his colleagues in the administration. "Even behind the scenes, we have worked together in a spirit of trust and I would be delighted if we could continue to do so." According to Nitzsche, the fact that Jena has only had three mayors since reunification is good for the city. "This continuity is also a value in itself."

Lützkendorf congratulated and praised fair election campaign

Kathleen Lützkendorf congratulated Nitzsche on his election victory. "It was a very fair election campaign overall and also in the past two weeks," she said. "It's a great result for the Greens and for me - the best result we've ever achieved." She had run for the first time and had immediately reached the run-off election, while another four candidates had reached the run-off elections for the district mayors. "We are very, very pleased with that." She thanked her campaign team and "from the bottom of my heart" her voters. The result shows that she was also able to win votes outside of the Green core electorate in the run-off election.

Lützkendorf sees the election result as a clear sign that the people of Jena expect more from the city when it comes to issues such as social justice, climate protection and adaptation, local public transport, cycling and strengthening culture in all parts of the city. "We, and I personally, would like to bring these issues to the future city leadership." She is ready for talks and a constructive role in the city leadership.

New term of office begins in just three weeks

The new term of office for the Lord Mayor begins in just three weeks, on July 1. "I am very pleased that we can now continue on a continuous basis," said Nitzsche. For example, a number of central positions need to be filled - including the management of the Philharmonie or the management of the TIP. Many topics have already been initiated and are now being worked on further. In the coming days, it will also be a matter of making contact with his counterparts, the district councillors who have been re-elected or newly elected. "Because good cooperation with the surrounding area is important to us," emphasized Nitzsche.

The future composition of the city leadership in Jena is not yet clear, said Nitzsche: "At the moment, for example, we cannot say whether there will still be three departments or whether there will perhaps be four." The question of a possible coalition will also be part of the talks that will take place in the coming days, according to Nitzsche: "The decisive factor will be that, in the end, as many people as possible can find themselves in the structure that is found."