In the presence of the director Michael Schwarz.

Election campaign for the Bundestag 2017: Parliamentary elections take place that still have an incomparable impact on the current political events. They go along with a belated formation of government taking place 171 days after the election. Far from the reporting´s focus on the chancellorship duel of Merkel and Schulz in Berlin, six young local politicians of the big, established parties wrestle for each vote. Die Kandidaten sheds light on the electoral campaign in Mainz, Speyer, Worms and Landau. Amongst the candidates are Jan Metzler (CDU, 36), Thomas Hitschler (SPD, 34), David Dietz (FDP, 35), Misbah Khan (Grüne, 27), Max Keck (Linke, 19), and Sebastian Münzenmaier (AfD, 28). During demonstrations, door-to-door campaigns, parish fairs, and interviews, they directly engage in conversations with the people from their election district and thereby provide insights into their very personal successes and setbacks.

Die Kandidaten shows an ambitious electoral campaign at the very basis of politics. It portrays the social interactions of the local politicians with each other, just like the occasional headwind and criticism they have to deal with. What unites them all is a full schedule, their political competitive spirit, and the intention of advocating their personal beliefs. One can witness what it means to be close to the people when it comes to politics and the ways in which a small-scale electoral campaign is structured.