Henriette Reker, 58, was out on the street ahead of the upcoming election in the German city of Cologne when she was seriously injured.
Advertisement
Cologne, the nation’s fourth-largest city by population, is holding a mayoral election Sunday.
At least one of Reker’s campaign staff was also injured at the weekly market held in the Braunsfeld neighborhood of Cologne, one of a total five victims.
Henriette Reker, an independent candidate who runs the city’s programs for migrants, was stabbed several times in the neck, police said.
A German mayoral candidate was stabbed in the neck today in what is being described by police as a “racist political” attack linked to the migrant crisis. Four other people were wounded and a 44-year-old suspect was taken into custody, Cologne police said on their website. He said Reker was in stable condition, according to WDR.
The attacker is said to be a Germany native and a Cologne resident for 15 years.
Prosecutor Ulf Willuhn said officials will now investigate whether that was in fact the man’s primary motive or whether his health played a role.
Ms Reker is running as an independent but is supported by the CDU, the Free Democrats and the Greens. Most Germans have been welcoming, but there have been repeated attacks this year on refugee shelters, ranging from arson to racist graffiti.
The incident took place in an atmosphere of growing tension in Germany where Merkel’s open-door policy towards Syrian refugees has faced a backlash from her conservative allies and spawned a growing number of increasingly vocal protests by the far-right.
Advertisement
Germany was reeling with news of the attack on Saturday, with hundreds of thousands of people taking to Twitter to offer their best wishes to Ms Reker and condemn the assailant and his motives.
