The newly elected mayor of a southwestern German town, Herdecke, has been left fighting for her life after being brutally attacked and stabbed, with 13 stab wounds to her stomach and back on Tuesday (October 7). Iris Stalzer was found seriously injured by her adopted son at her apartment, according to German media. She reportedly told him she had been attacked in the street by “several men”. She was rushed to hospital with life-threatening injuries.
Ms Stalzer’s adopted son, 15, was reportedly taken to a police patrol car, where he was handcuffed and put into a forensic suit, German news site Bild reported. Both of Stalzer’s children – a 15-year-old boy and a 17-year-old girl are adopted, according to German news agency DPA. Hagen police are said to have launched a manhunt as it remains unclear who attacked the mayor. A homicide squad has now taken over the investigation into the stabbing, but there is still no information on the possible motive.
Ms Stalzer, 57, won the mayoral election just 10 days before the attack, on September 28, with 52.2% of the vote, beating Christian Democratic Union of Germany candidate Fabian Haas. A Social Democrat, she is due to take office in the first week of November. She has worked for many years in the local politics of Herdecke, which has a population of just under 23,000.
Investigators said her adopted son was taken to a police patrol car, handcuffed and put into a forensic suit to prevent evidence from being covered up, Bild added. Prosecutors and police said in a joint statement that their inquiry was looking into every possibility and said: “Close family involvement cannot be ruled out at the present time.”
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz condemned the “abominable” attack in a social media post, offering his thoughts to her loved ones.
He wrote on X: “We have received a message about an abominable act from Herdecke. It must now be swiftly clarified.
“We are anxious about the life of the designated mayor, Iris Stalzer, and hope for her complete recovery. My thoughts are with her family and her relatives.”
In her last Instagram post from five days ago, Stalzer is seen celebrating her election win.
In the caption, she writes: “What an evening! Jan-Christoph Schaberick and I did it for Herdecke and the EN circle! We are mega grateful for the trust and are looking forward to the good cooperation for Herdecke and the entire EN circle. Together we will rock this!”
A recent study found that 60% of politicians in Germany had experienced violence at least once, according to The Independent. One in five said it made them more reluctant to appear in public. In 2019, a far-right activist fatally shot the conservative local government president Walter Luebcke, a supporter of then-chancellor Angela Merkel’s refugee policy.