With an absolute majority of 55.41 percent of the vote, a German community elected a Syrian refugee as its new mayor on Sunday, the municipality declared in the evening.
Ryyan Alshebl, 29, ran unopposed for mayor of Ostelsheim in the Baden-Württemberg region of southwest Germany after fleeing Syria in 2015.
He is a Green Party supporter in his personal life.
He calls his election campaign experiences “mainly favorable.”
At age 21, Mr. Alshebl escaped his native Sweida in southern Syria. He has spent the last seven years working in the administration of the neighbouring Althengstett town hall.
As mayor, Mr. Alshebl stated that he now intends to relocate to Ostelsheim in the Calw district.
Most likely the first Syrian mayor in Germany’s southwest, Mr. Alshebl.
The Association of Municipalities of Baden-Württemberg claims that no other candidates with Syrian ancestry have run for mayor.
In the election on Sunday, Mr Alshebl prevailed against the non-party candidates Marco Strauß and Mathias Fey.
(dpa/NAN)
