Romanian becomes mayor of Germany’s Görlitz

Romanian Octavian Ursu has been elected mayor of Görlitz, a town in eastern Germany, after defeating the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) candidate Sebastian Wippel.

Ursu ran on behalf of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and managed the win after receiving support from the Green and the Left parties. He received 55% of the votes, 10 points ahead of Wippel, The Guardian reported.

The Romanian was also helped by a petition of film and culture personalities, who urged Görlitz residents to vote “against hate and hostility, isolation and discord.”

Ursu studied at the Bucharest Conservatory, before moving to Germany in 1990. He wasn’t planning on staying in Germany but after meeting his wife he settled there, Digi24.ro reported.

Ursu told Digi24 that the occasional articles in German media about Romanian beggars and thieves did not prevent him from revealing that he is coming from Romania. “They almost challenged me to say this on every occasion, so that they would notice that there are other people coming from Romania as well,” Ursu said.

The newly-elected mayor said he adapted to the local culture “because he is a fan of order and discipline” but that he also brought from Romania a more relaxed way of being. He also confessed to not being able to persuade his wife to drive in the Romanian capital.

“She told me she does not want to drive in Romania, especially in Bucharest; she found it unusual, she thought there are no rules, which is not true, but one needs to get accustomed to the driving style when coming here,” Ursu told Digi24.

Görlitz is sometimes referred to as Görliwood for the many films shot there. Among them were Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel, Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds, or George Clooney’s The Monuments Men.

(Photo: Octavian Ursu Facebook Page)

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