The local elections in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), scheduled for September 14, 2025, have been engulfed in an atmosphere of uncertainty and shock due to the sudden death of four party candidates Alternative for Germany (AfD) within a short period of time.
The affected cities are Wesel, Bad Lippspringe, Blomberg, and Schwerte, which has raised concerns both organizationally and politically.
According to reports, the police have not found any evidence of third-party involvement in any of the cases. In several of the deaths, judicial investigations were initiated, but these were quickly closed after "natural causes" were determined in at least two of the deaths. However, the number and the close timing of these deaths have caused speculation and theories on social media.
The most recent confirmed case was that of Ralph Lange, AfD candidate for the municipal council in Blomberg, who died on August 28 at the age of 66.
His death invalidated the early voting ballots that had already been sent, forcing local authorities to reprint and resend the electoral material in record time. Blomberg decided that the elections will be held as a partial election on the originally scheduled date.
Similar cases occurred in Bad Lippspringe, where Stefan Berendes, also an AfD candidate, died, as well as in Schwerte and Rheinberg, which forced the repetition of administrative processes and electoral reorganization in multiple districts.
