In the Volkswagen works council election in Wolfsburg, IG Metall defended its top position despite losses. The list led by Daniela Cavallo received 74.8 percent of the votes, securing 52 of 67 seats. In Braunschweig, an AfD-affiliated organization entered the works council for the first time.
The results of the Volkswagen works council election in Wolfsburg were announced on Friday evening. The IG Metall list led by works council chairwoman Daniela Cavallo received 74.8 percent of the votes, as stated by the works council. This marks a decline from 85.5 percent in the 2022 election. As a result, the union secures 52 of the 67 seats for the next four years.
The second strongest force is "Die Andere Liste" of former IG Metall local chief Frank Patta, which rose to 14.1 percent and increased from 4 to 10 seats. Patta had fallen out with Cavallo's predecessor Bernd Osterloh and founded his own list. During the campaign, he leveled sharp criticism at the works council leadership. Overall, six lists and one individual candidate participated, including the Christian Metalworkers' Union (CGM) and independent lists that criticized IG Metall.
In Wolfsburg, 61,300 eligible voters were called to vote, nearly half of the 130,000 VW employees in Germany. Cavallo only ran in Wolfsburg and remains chair of the overall and group works councils.
At other sites in Lower Saxony, Saxony, and Hesse, IG Metall's vote share was sometimes higher. In Braunschweig, a components site, the organization Zentrum, regarded as AfD-affiliated, participated for the first time. The group, which calls itself an "alternative union," received 6.49 percent and 2 of 35 seats. IG Metall achieved 78.5 percent and 28 seats there, while CGM got 15 percent and 5 seats. Zentrum was founded in 2009 as "Zentrum Automobil" at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Stuttgart-Untertürkheim and is mainly active in southern and eastern Germany.
