Kassel in election fever: Early federal elections on February 23, 2025!

On December 27, 2024, important information about the upcoming early federal election in Germany was published. The election will take place on February 23, 2025, and there are significant changes to the mail-in voting process that encourage voters to act quickly.

The time period for applying for a postal vote will be shortened to around two weeks, which is a significant reduction compared to the usual four to five weeks. Cities like Dresden, Frankfurt and Bad Hersfeld advise voters to submit their applications quickly. Applications for postal voting documents can be submitted online from January 13, 2025, and election notifications will be sent by February 2, 2025.

Important deadlines and procedures

Eligible voters must prepare for postal voting documents to be sent out as soon as the ballot papers are available. The postal voting office in the town hall is expected to open in the first week of February. The Kassel returning officer recommends either voting at the polling station on election day or applying for postal voting documents as soon as possible.

Over 2,000 poll workers are needed to carry out the election, with 750 volunteers having already offered to help. Direct candidates in the Kassel constituency include Daniel Bettermann for the SPD, Maik Behschad for the CDU and Boris Mijatovic for the Greens.

Regulations on postal voting

As [SWR] reported, all eligible voters must apply for, fill out and return their postal voting documents in a timely manner. The deadline for applying for documents theoretically ends on February 21, 2025 at 6 p.m. The voting letter must be received at the address provided by 6 p.m. on election Sunday. People voting from abroad require a stamp, while domestic voters do not.

Strict measures are in place to avoid errors that could result in the vote being invalid. This includes that the election letter must arrive on time and all required documents must be completely filled out. In the 2021 state elections in Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate, over 50% and 60% respectively used postal voting, while the proportion of postal voters in the 2021 federal election was 47.3%.

For the upcoming election, it is important to observe the new regulations and take care of the postal voting documents in good time.