Two cars belonging to Social Democrat (SPD) politician Michelle MĂĽntefering were set on fire on Monday evening in Herne in the Ruhr region of western Germany.
Müntefering’s private car as well as a car belonging to the SPD went up in flames after a Molotov cocktail was thrown inside the smashed-in window of one of the vehicles.
Police searched for the perpetrators with a helicopter but had not located them by Tuesday morning.
“I’m outraged at the high criminal energy that is inflaming our streets,” Müntefering told DPA news agency. “The fact that this has taken place before the elections makes it an attack on our democratic system as a whole.”
The 37-year-old, who is married to the former SPD leader Franz MĂĽntefering, has been in the Bundestag (German parliament) since 2013 as MP for Herne. She is a member of the foreign affairs committee and chair of the German-Turkish working group.
In the weeks leading up to the state election in North Rhine-Westphalia in May two cars belonging to Christian Democrat (CDU) politician Sven Rickert were set on fire in Herne. Police never made any arrests in connection with the crime.
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