Iris Stalzer, the recently elected mayor of Herdecke in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, was discovered critically injured in her apartment, authorities said on Tuesday.
Security sources told reporters the center-left Social Democrat politician had suffered several stab wounds.
What do we know about the stabbing in Herdecke?
Public broadcaster WDR first reported the incident. Emergency services found Stalzer alive but in a life-threatening condition. She was flown to the hospital in a rescue helicopter.
Stalzer was airlifted to the hospitalImage: Alex Talash/dpa/picture alliance
According to the Bild newspaper, Stalzer was found seriously injured in her apartment by her son. The boy, 15, is said to have told the police that his mother had been attacked by several men on the street.
A WDR journalist reported from the scene that a teenager was led out of the house in handcuffs by the police and taken away.
Investigators are continuing to secure evidence at the scene while Stalzer receives intensive medical treatment.
The motive for the attack remains unknown. However, according to the news magazine Der Spiegel, there was a case of domestic violence in the Stalzer household earlier this year.
Stalzer had only recently been elected mayor. In the runoff election on September 28, she won with 52.2% of the vote against center-right Christian Democrat (CDU) candidate Fabian Conrad Haas. The CDU had previously held the mayoral office in Herdecke for a long time.
A 57-year-old mother of two teenagers, Stalzer is a labor lawyer who has worked for many years in the local politics of the town of some 23,000.
What has been the political reaction?
Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) has expressed deep shock over the knife attack on Stalzer.
“We have received news of a heinous act from Herdecke. It must now be quickly clarified. We fear for the life of the designated mayor, Iris Stalzer, and hope for her full recovery,” Merz wrote on the platform X. “My thoughts are with her family and loved ones.”
SPD parliamentary group leader in Berlin, Matthias Miersch, said he hoped the Social Democrat would “survive the terrible act.” He could not comment on the background, saying the SPD was deeply concerned.
Edited by: Wesley Rahn