Elif Eralp: Who is Berlin’s leftist leader dubbed ‘Germany’s Mamdani’?

When Elif Eralp was 10, she rallied her friends to make hand-painted posters in her family’s garage, calling for the protection of the environment.It was the early nineties in Germany and this was one of her first forays into activism. Her parents also inspired her by taking her along to political demonstrations.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4German court opens trial against left-wing ‘hammer gang’list 2 of 4What is remigration, the far-right fringe idea going mainstream?list 3 of 4Far left wins in Berlin vote, far right in Germany’s northeastlist 4 of 4Germany offers vulnerable Afghans cash to cease immigration effortsend of listNow, 35 years later, Eralp is taking her social justice advocacy to new heights.On Sunday, her The Left party (Die Linke) won first place in Berlin’s state election – putting her on course to potentially become the next governing mayor of Germany’s gritty, creative capital.Born in Munich to Turkish socialists and trade unionists who fled the 1980 military coup in Turkiye, Eralp’s victory could mark several firsts. She would be the first The Left party candidate to lead Berlin since German reunification in 1990, the city’s first mayor of Turk...