Essen (dpa / lnw) - The City Council of North Rhine-Westphalia is expected to elect the Mayor of Essen, Thomas Kufen, as the new chairman at noon today. The CDU politician from the Ruhr area metropolis has no opposing candidate. The Bochum town hall chief Thomas Eiskirch (SPD) is to be the deputy. The term of office is two years. The top position changes regularly to emphasize the impartiality of the body. The City Day represents 40 independent and district-affiliated cities with a total of around nine million inhabitants - around half of the NRW population.
At the general meeting with around 500 delegates and guests in Essen, the city representatives also want to discuss their political wishes for the new NRW state government. This should include long-standing demands such as debt relief for local authorities and more financial support for school financing and climate protection. The motto of the general meeting is "Home worth living in. The cities in NRW". Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst (CDU) wants to greet the participants with a video message.
