The mayor of a town in western Germany is in a life-threatening condition after being stabbed in what police have described as an “abhorrent attack”, just days after her election. Iris Stalzer, 57, was found with serious injuries and multiple stab wounds in her Herdecke apartment by her son, according to German media. Her 17-year-old daughter was reportedly in the house at the time. Police said her 15-year-old son was taken away in handcuffs and an evidence-preserving suit “purely to protect evidence”. He told officers that his mother had been attacked by several men.
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A major police operation has been launched in Herdecke, a town of around 23,000 people, which Ms Stalzer was due to lead as mayor from 1 November. She was elected on 28 September as a member of the centre-left Social Democrats, the junior party in Germany’s conservative-led federal government. Broadcaster WDR reported that Ms Stalzer dragged herself back into her house after the attack, which occurred around midday.
Conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed his concern on social media, stating: “We have received news of a terrible deed in Herdecke. It must be swiftly investigated. We fear for the life of the mayor-designate and hope for her full recovery.” Matthias Miersch, the leader of the Social Democrats’ parliamentary group in Berlin, told reporters: “We heard a few minutes ago that newly elected mayor Iris Stalzer was stabbed in Herdecke. We hope that she survives this terrible act. We cannot comment at the moment on the background.”
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Ms Stalzer, a lifelong resident of Herdecke, is married with two teenage children and has worked as a lawyer specialising in labour law. Her election followed a particularly bitter campaign, in which she defeated a candidate from Mr Merz’s centre-right Christian Democrats. Political violence has been a recurring concern in Germany: a 2019 far-right attack killed Walter Luebcke, a local government president, while Henriette Reker, elected mayor of Cologne in 2015, survived a stabbing by a right-wing extremist the day before her election.
