Story highlights A campaign spokesman says the attack shows the risks of right-wing rhetoric

Henriette Reker wins the mayoral election in Cologne, a day after someone stabbed her

Reker strongly advocates integration and multicultural policy

(CNN) A man who said he disapproved of her liberal stance on refugees stabbed her in the neck a day before voters went to the polls.

But that didn't stop German mayoral candidate Henriette Reker from winning Sunday's election. The independent candidate, who's expected to make a full recovery, is poised to become the next mayor of the western city of Cologne. Preliminary election results indicate she soared to victory, winning more than 52% of the vote

While Reker recovered from her injuries, a judge ruled Sunday that the suspect accused of attacking her must stay in jail until his trial.

Reker was campaigning Saturday in an open-air market, handing out roses to pedestrians, when a middle-aged man approached her and asked for a flower.

"When she tried to give him one, he pulled out a knife and stabbed her in the neck," campaign spokesman Frederik Schorn told CNN.

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