Henriette Reker

Henriette Reker (born 9 December 1956) is a German lawyer and independent politician. She is known for her pro-immigration stance and for being the victim of an assassination attempt in 2015. A day after the attack, Reker was elected mayor of Cologne after gaining 52.66% of the votes, becoming the first woman to hold the office. Reker was re-elected in 2020. Her term as mayor ended on 31 October 2025.

Early life

Reker was born to Josef Reker and Gretel Martini and raised in the Cologne district of Bickendorf. Reker's mother was a life-long member of the SPD and moved to Cologne from Lower Silesia after World War II, while her father was a pastry chef who lived in Vogelsang district his whole life.

Reker attended Liebfrauenschule, where she finished her Abitur in 1976. She studied law at the Universities of Cologne, Regensburg, and Göttingen, completing her second state law examination in 1986 at District Court Münster.

Between 1990 and 1992, Reker worked as a clerk for an employers' liability insurance association in Bielefeld, then as legal counsel for the State Association of Guild Health Insurance Funds in Münster from until 2000. She gained her admission to practice law in 1996.

Political career

From 2000 until 2010, Reker served as deputy mayor for Social Affairs, Health and Consumer Protection of Gelsenkirchen. In 2010 she was appointed a mayoral deputy for social affairs, integration and the environment of the city of Cologne.

Supported by the CDU, FDP, and The Greens, Reker ran for Mayor of Cologne in October 2015 and was re-elected in September 2020. At the end of January 2025, Reker announced she would not seek a third term as mayor, her term as mayor ended on 31 October 2025.