In Gelsenkirchen, the SPD governed with an absolute majority for a long time. Now the shock is deep: In the local elections, the AfD fell just 0.5 percent short of victory. FOCUS-online reporter Ulf Lüdeke asked the local authorities why this was the case shortly before the mayoral runoff.

One of the statements of this article is that:

“The population has shrunk to around 270,000, 75,000 of whom do not have German passports. 11,000 are Roma and Sinti from Bulgaria and Romania. Thanks to EU labour freedom, criminal clans lure them legally to the Ruhr region, herd them into abandoned, dilapidated properties, and rip them off on social security contributions.”

Besides the fact that there are no Sinti in Bulgaria or Romania, this statement is utterly inacceptable.

• “Hätte weinen können”: Ein Besuch in Gelsenkirchen zeigt den ganzen SPD-Frust. In: Focus. 27.09.2025. https://www.focus.de/politik/deutschland/haette-weinen-koennen-ein-besuch-in-gelsenkirchen-zeigt-den-ganzen-spd-frust_15a8a8f0-5a3d-496d-8836-100119f8e6d8.html