“Magic Picture” for the German Social Democrats (SPD) was the result of the elections for the local Hamburg House on Sunday, which fully confirms the polls: just a week after its crash in the February 23 parliamentary elections, Christian Democrats (CDUs) limited to 19.8% and second. The Greens follow with 18.5%, the Left Party (Die Linke) with 11.2%and the far -right alternative to Germany (AfD) with 7.5%. Liberals (FDPs) do not enter the local parliament, as they receive only 2%, well below the 5% provided by the electoral law for representation in Parliament.

It was an unusual match, as (almost) everyone celebrates the result. Not only the Social Democrats who remain dominant, but also: the Christian Democrats, because they are established in second place by overcoming the Greens, something few expected. The Greens themselves, because they will probably continue to coexist with the SPD. The left, because it rarely achieves a double -digit percentage in a West German state. But also the far -right AfD, as it increases its rates (marginally had managed to enter the local Parliament with 5.3% in the previous Hamburg elections in 2020).

“The first priority is the continuation of the coalition with the Greens, with whom we have ruled calmly and prudence to date,” the mayor of Hamburg and the winner of the elections Peter Chester said Monday afternoon, noting that they have not been excluded. For his part, CDU candidate Dennis Tring states that “now the ball is on the SPD stadium, but we are eager to take on government responsibility.”

The city of… millionaires

It was a special result in a … separate state, if anything. Hamburg is the city with the most millionaires in Germany, but also with the highest rents (after Munich). It is estimated that millionaires are more than 1,300 (of which at least 11 are billionaires). According to Manager-Magazin magazine, Hamburg’s 25 most affluent taxpayers have a total income of over 40 billion euros. How is it possible for such a city to remain for decades – with short breaks – the Social Democratic stronghold, while the Liberals are struggling to survive politically (and usually fail)?

There are many possible explanations. Hamburg is the city of shipowners, but also of seafarers, formerly of the port workers. It has a centuries -old urban tradition but also a powerful labor movement. “Has and occupiers” usually do not display their wealth, for the rest there is no lack of social rise, while there is a strong “economic inland” around the city, which offers more economical living opportunities, without great discounts on quality of life. In addition, the SPD itself in Hamburg is more conservative than the rest of the country. That is why he has already highlighted two Social Democrats Chancellors, Allf Saltz and Helmut Smith.

“The Best Berlin”?

Between serious and funny the Berlin Tagesspiegel newspaper raises the question: Is Hamburg in the end is “the best Berlin”? Her answer is affirmative. Among other things, because, as the Berlin columnist points out, Hamburg is good traders and knowing money management. It would be impossible for a corresponding “scandal” such as the new Berlin International Airport, which “cost 7.3 billion euros and ended with a nine -year delay.”