Simone Lange (born 24 October 1976) is a German politician of the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Form ...

(SPD) who served as Mayor of Flensburg from 2017 to 2023.

Early life and career

Lange grew up in Rudolstadt and completed her

Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...

in 1995. After completing a polytechnic degree in 1998 (Dipl.-Verwaltungsfachwirtin (police division)), she was employed at the criminal investigation department in

Flensburg Flensburg (; Danish language, Danish and ; ; ) is an independent city, independent town in the far north of the Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. After Kiel and Lübeck, it is the third-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein. Flensburg's ...

from 1999 until 2012.

Political career

Lange joined the Social Democratic Party (SPD) in 2003 and held multiple positions in the party. She was part of Flensburg council from 2008 until 2012. She was a direct candidate for the Schleswig-Holstein state election in 2012. On the day of the election, she won against the former district representative of the Christian Democratic Union and was directly elected into the Landtag of Schleswig-Holstein. In the SPD faction of the Schleswig-Holstein Landtag, she was spokesperson for

police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...

policy and equality. She held the position of acting chair of the select committee for home and legal affairs and acting member of the social and health select committee. During her political tenure, she took a stand for labelling requirements of police officers and the introduction of a police representative. On 28 July 2015, it was announced that Lange would run against

incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position. In an election, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the position that is up for election, regardless of whether they are seeking re-election. There may or may not be ...

Simon Faber of the

South Schleswig Voters' Association The South Schleswig Voters' AssociationOther translations include ''South Schleswig Voter Alliance'', ''South Schleswig Voters' Committee'', ''South Schleswig Voter Federation'', ''South Schleswig Voters Group'', ''South Schleswig Voters League'', ...

for the 2016

mayor elections. She was backed by the SPD, Bündnis Alliance 90/The Greens and the Christian Democratic Union. During the election on 5 June 2016, Lange won during the first ballot and received 51.4% of the votes. Faber received 22.8% of the votes, according to the official election results. Lange took office as mayor of Flensburg in January 2017. In February 2018, she stood for the leadership of the SPD. She was defeated at the party conference - which was held in Wiesbaden on 22 April 2018 - by

Andrea Nahles Andrea Maria Nahles (born 20 June 1970) is a former German politician who has been the director of the Federal Employment Agency (BA) since 2022. Nahles is best known for having served as leader of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) from April ...

, winning 27% of the vote to Nahles's 66%. In the 2019 SPD leadership election, she announced her intention to run for the position again, this time together with Alexander Ahrens;Lange und Ahrens erreichen nötige Unterstützung
''

Der Spiegel (, , stylized in all caps) is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. With a weekly circulation of about 724,000 copies in 2022, it is one of the largest such publications in Europe. It was founded in 1947 by John Seymour Chaloner ...

'', 27 August 2019. shortly after, both withdrew their candidacies and instead endorsed Norbert Walter-Borjans and

Saskia Esken Saskia Christina Esken (' Hofer; born 28 August 1961) is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, Social Democratic Party (SPD) who has been serving as co-leader of the party since being 2019 Social Democratic Party of Ger ...

Other activities

Corporate boards

* Nord-Ostsee Sparkasse, Ex-Officio Member of the Supervisory Board

Non-profit organizations

* Nikolaus Reiser Foundation, Ex-Officio Member of the Board * Trade Union of the Police (GdP), Member

References

External links

Website of Simone Lange
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lange, Simone 1976 births Living people People from Rudolstadt People from Bezirk Gera Social Democratic Party of Germany politicians Members of the Landtag of Schleswig-Holstein Mayors of Flensburg Aufstehen Women members of state parliaments in Germany Women mayors of places in Germany 21st-century German women politicians 20th-century German women