Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner withdraws candidacy 10 weeks before election

Berlin's Governing Mayor, Kai Wegner, announced on Friday that he will withdraw his candidacy for the upcoming September elections, citing his handling of a severe power outage in January as a key factor.

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It was simply a mess.

"It was simply a mess," Wegner stated, referring to his actions during the widespread power failure in early January, which was reportedly caused by an arson attack. He admitted to making mistakes but also highlighted successes during his tenure, such as the functioning of citizen service centers and the satisfaction of police officers with their work.

Wegner's decision comes ten weeks before the election for the Berlin House of Representatives. He had been under increasing pressure within his own Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party due to his crisis management, particularly regarding his communication on the first day of the January power outage.

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I have always wanted to remain authentic. I want to remain who I am.

Despite his withdrawal from the mayoral race, Wegner will continue to serve as Governing Mayor until the election of the new parliament. He expressed a desire to remain authentic and true to himself, emphasizing that he stands by his accomplishments in the city.

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I am proud of it.