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Philipp Raulfs wins district election in Gifhorn with a clear majority!
On October 28, 2025, Philipp Raulfs (SPD) was elected as the new district administrator of Gifhorn with 53.6% of the votes.
Philipp Raulfs wins district election in Gifhorn with a clear majority!
Yesterday evening the time had finally come: the district election in Gifhorn brought a clear result. Loud WAZ The SPD candidate Philipp Raulfs received an impressive 53.60 percent of the votes in the first round. Raulfs was thus confirmed as the district's new leader and election winner. Voter turnout was 48.71 percent, resulting from a total of 141,253 eligible voters.
A total of 68,809 votes were cast, with 250 invalid. Raulfs received 36,746 votes, while his competitors Telse Dirksmeyer-Vielhauer from the CDU received 17,414 votes (25.40 percent), Stefan Marzischewski-Drewes from the AfD received 13,021 votes (18.99 percent) and Marion Mäding from the BSW only received 1,378 votes (2.01 percent). Five more votes were subsequently admitted, including one for the AfD and two for the CDU. A ballot paper from Brome, which was initially withheld because of a suspicious envelope, also turned out to be valid.
An unexpected victory
Philipp Raulfs was surprised by the clear victory in the first round of voting. In his first statements he stated that he had not expected an absolute majority. He will be elected for a term of eight years, until 2033, and plans to resign his mandate in the Lower Saxony state parliament after a 14-day revocation period has expired, which was also approved by NDR is confirmed. After his departure, Andrea Kötter will take over his seat in the state parliament. The first big challenge will be the planned budget consultation for 2026, which is scheduled for mid-December and is due to be approved by the district council.
Raulfs’ predecessor, Tobias Heilmann, unfortunately died on May 28, 2025. Heilmann, who has been in office since November 1, 2021, would have remained in office until the end of October 2026. The election was therefore of particular importance for the district in order to ensure a seamless transition and bring a breath of fresh air into the administration.
What's next?
With the clear mandate and the first proposals in the pipeline, it will be interesting to see how Raulfs can implement his vision for Gifhorn. In the future, the focus will have to be particularly on sustainable budget policy in order to master the challenges of the coming years. The population is excited to see how the new district administrator will put his plans into practice and thus give positive impetus to the region.
The high voter turnout for the election, which took place on Sunday, was a sign of the citizens' great interest in political developments in Gifhorn. Even if some ballot papers were invalid, the lively participation shows a lively democratic awareness. With this clear result, Philipp Raulfs has taken on an important responsibility and is faced with the task of justifying this trust in the coming years.