Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is edging closer to taking control of a state government for the first time since World War II, after a strong showing in Sunday’s election in Saxony-Anhalt, an eastern state of about 2.1 million people. Preliminary results gave the AfD 43.8% of the vote, projected to translate into 39 of the 83 seats in the state parliament — just three short of a majority.
Deputy parliamentary leader Beatrix von Storch told the BBC the party was “very, very close” to power and urged rival parties to negotiate, warning that refusal could trigger political chaos or force a new election. Most German parties have long refused to cooperate with the AfD, which domestic intelligence classifies as “right-wing extremist,” though the party’s state leader, 35-year-old Ulrich Siegmund, rejects that label and calls the result a “clear mandate to govern.”
One possible path to power involves the small left-wing populist BSW party, projected to win five seats, quietly tolerating an AfD minority government. Von Storch also said some members of the conservative CDU — Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s party — were privately unhappy with their own leadership. Merz reportedly told colleagues the result marked a “profound turning point.”
The AfD, which backs mass deportations under its “remigration” policy, also drew attention from abroad, with US President Donald Trump and a Russian presidential envoy both commenting favorably on the results online.
Read the full report on BBC News.
Source: Germany's far-right AfD says 'democracy demands' parties work with them after state election win (feeds.bbci.co.uk). English version produced with AI assistance.
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