German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party condemned electing Stefan Jagsch, a member of the far-right NPD (Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands), mayor of the town of Waldsiedlung (Hessen).
The NPD representative was elected unanimously. The post had remained vacant for weeks.
Local CDU member Norbert Szielasko, who voted for Jagsch, said the council voted for him because they ‘don’t have anybody else, especially nobody young who knows how to use computers and send emails,’ apnews reports.
Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, the leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), stressed the need to cancel the council’s decision.
German officials have repeatedly tried to outlaw the NPD which is often described as a neo-Nazi organizarion and also criticized for its anti-Semitism. The latest banning attempt resulted in the Federal Constitutional Court’s rejecting the request on the grounds that NPD wasn’t a significant political force in Germany.
