Violation of neutrality obligation: Mayor in election advertising scandal

Dispute over Duty of neutrality: City council election in Steinbach-Hallenberg contested

In Steinbach-Hallenberg, the challenge to the city council election is causing a stir. The reason for this is not personal sensitivities, but the question of an official's duty of neutrality.

According to candidate Keller, the challenge is not about his personal election result, but about compliance with fair election rules. One point of criticism concerns the confusion on the ballot papers caused by candidates with the same name who were difficult to distinguish from one another.

Particularly serious, however, is the accusation against mayor Markus Böttcher, who is said to have violated his duty of neutrality on several occasions in his role as an official. According to allegations, Böttcher used his office to advertise for himself and his voting group Pro 8 both in the official gazette and online.

Despite his clear election victory and reaching number 1 on the Pro 8 list, Böttcher did not take up his mandate as a city council member because this would have required him to resign as mayor. As mayor, he is an ex-officio member of the city council, which makes his bogus candidacy and relinquishment of the mandate all the more problematic.