Far-right AfD achieves strong victory in Saxony-Anhalt but lacks absolute majority
The Alternative for Germany party secured 43.8% of the vote in Sunday's Saxony-Anhalt state election, more than twice the share won by Chancellor Friedrich Merz's Christian Democrats. Although the AfD won the most seats, it fell three short of the 42 needed for an outright majority in the 83-seat parliament.
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The far-right Alternative for Germany achieved a commanding victory in Sunday's state election in Saxony-Anhalt, capturing 43.8 percent of the vote according to preliminary official results. This was more than double the 17.2 percent secured by the Christian Democratic Union, led by Chancellor Friedrich Merz. However, projections showed that the AfD would win only 39 of the state parliament's 83 seats, leaving it three seats short of the 42 required for an absolute majority.
Ulrich Siegmund, the AfD's lead candidate, declared that the party had "written history" and indicated that it would not pursue minority government arrangements. Co-leader Alice Weidel also described the result as historic. The AfD in Saxony-Anhalt has been classified as "rightwing extremist" by Germany's domestic intelligence agency, and mainstream parties have maintained a so-called firewall that prevents cooperation with the party.
Chancellor Merz avoided immediate public comment on Sunday evening but subsequently stated that the outcome "is an election result we cannot simply move past." France reportedly described the AfD's performance as a "serious moment" for European politics. The path forward remains uncertain: it is unclear whether the AfD will successfully negotiate a coalition to achieve a governing majority, or whether the CDU and other parties will continue to refuse cooperation with the far-right party despite its dominant share of the vote.
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