AfD Poised to Lead First Far‑Right State Government in Germany Since WWII

When the ballots were finally counted in Saxony‑Anhalt on Sunday, the numbers looked unsettling for many in Berlin. The Alternative for Germany – the AfD – was on track for roughly 44 % of the vote, more than double what it managed five years ago.

Ulrich Siegmund, the 35‑year‑old AfD lead candidate, stood on a stage in Naumburg and declared, “We have written history.” His words rang with a mix of triumph and warning, aimed not only at local voters but also at Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s center‑right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which has governed the state for the past 24 years.

The AfD entered the race hoping for an outright majority – something that would allow it to form a government without having to rely on any coalition partner. That would effectively bypass the “firewall” most mainstream parties have erected against working with the far‑right. Early exit polls suggested the party fell just shy of the 50‑plus percent needed for a solitary rule, but the margin was slim enough that any final tally could still tip the balance.

If the AfD does secure enough seats to command a government, it would be a watershed moment: the first time since 1945 that a party widely labeled as extremist would run a German state. The party’s regional branch in Saxony‑Anhalt is already on the domestic intelligence agency’s watch‑list as a proven right‑wing extremist organization, cited for its hostile rhetoric toward Muslim migrants and its flirtation with “remigration” policies – a euphemism for mass deportations.

Nationally, the AfD is the biggest opposition force in the Bundestag, drawing most of its support from the former East Germany, where economic woes and a lingering sense of disenfranchisement have fed anti‑establishment sentiment. Yet the prospect of an AfD‑led state government raises a host of practical questions. German states wield considerable power over education, policing and broadcasting. Siegmund has already outlined a slate of controversial measures: a “deportation offensive,” ending incentives for newcomers, pulling the state out of the regional public broadcaster over alleged “disinformation,” and even legalising home‑schooling – something currently banned across Germany.

For the CDU, the results are a blow to Merz’s personal brand. In the exit‑poll snapshots, the CDU was projected at about 18 %, a steep drop that could see the party losing its foothold in the state for the first time. Party loyalist Franziska Hoppermann dismissed any idea of cooperating with the AfD, calling it a “right‑wing extremist party” that wants to abandon the euro and align closely with Russia.

Still, politics is rarely black‑and‑white. Two years ago in neighboring Thuringia, the AfD won the most votes but was shut out of government when the CDU formed a minority coalition with smaller parties – a scenario that could repeat here if the CDU can cobble together enough allies, perhaps even tapping the Left Party, despite deep ideological rifts.

What is clear is that German voters are sending a stark signal: discontent with the status quo is boiling over, and the AfD is capitalising on that sentiment. Whether this translates into a governing mandate, and how Berlin will respond, remains to be seen. One thing is certain, though – the political landscape of Germany may never look the same again.