The Alternative for Germany (AfD) surged into first place in state elections in Saxony-Anhalt yesterday, exit polls showed, putting a far-right party on the cusp of power at state level for the first time since the Second World War.
The AfD won 44.5 per cent of the vote, with Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s conservatives trailing well behind on 18.5pc, and the centre-left Social Democrats and environmental Greens both clearing the minimum threshold to enter parliament, according to an exit poll from the ARD broadcaster.
“We have made history in this country,” said Ulrich Siegmund, the 35-year-old AfD lead candidate in Saxony-Anhalt, who drew thousands to his campaign rallies and who repeatedly cast victory in the state as a first step towards securing national power in federal elections due in 2029.
The result marks a major advance in the AfD’s push for national power and a significant setback for Merz’s coalition government, although it remained unclear whether the party would be able to form a state government. Turnout was around 76pc, well above levels typically seen in state elections.
Much could depend on whether the left-wing populist BSW party, a potential AfD coalition partner, could also clear the threshold. Exit polls showed it just above or just below it.
The AfD party’s co-leader Alice Weidel hailed an ‘historic’ result which had given the AfD a clear mandate to govern but it was not immediately clear whether it would be able to form a government.
State premier Sven Schulze congratulated the AfD and acknowledged the result showed it was the strongest party.
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