Second election round: duels in Görlitz and Aue-Bad Schlema

Hartung used to be active for the party "Die Heimat" (formerly NPD). He is deputy chairman and co-founder of "Free Saxony". The Saxon Office for the Protection of the Constitution describes the party as a "mobilization machine" and "organized group of neo-National Socialists, Die Heimat functionaries and other scene members or sympathizers".

In Görlitz, the duel from 2019 will be repeated

The Görlitz Left Party candidate Sabine Christian and the independent Hagen Jeschke already announced their withdrawal on Monday. With just over 3 percent of the vote each, they trailed incumbent Octavian Ursu (CDU) with 49.1 percent and AfD member of the state parliament Sebastian Wippel with 44.3 percent in Sunday's election.

This means that the second round of voting on 31 May will see a repeat of the 2019 duel. Back then, Ursu prevailed over Wippel with 55.2 percent and a good ten percentage point lead.

The mayoral elections in Görlitz and Aue-Bad Schlema will go to a second round because none of the candidates achieved the necessary absolute majority, i.e. more than 50 percent of the vote, on Sunday.