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AfD eyes power in Saxony-Anhalt
Germany is holding a seismic election this weekend in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt, where the Alternative for Germany (AfD) is aiming to secure a majority in the regional parliament.
“Germany's far-right AfD bids for first taste of power in eastern vote”
The BBC says the AfD is bidding for “first taste of power” and that Ulrich Siegmund is the party’s lead candidate, with the 35-year-old described as “Germany’s Most Dangerous Man” by Der Spiegel magazine.
Anadolu Ajansı reports that polls put the AfD above 40% in Saxony-Anhalt, while Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democrats (CDU) are sliding toward one of their weakest results in a region the CDU has governed for decades.
CBS News frames the stakes around Magdeburg, saying the city of only about 244,000 people will be at the center of an election that could leave a far-right party in control of a German state for the first time since World War II.
Extremism labels and party replies
The AfD’s opponents and German security institutions are central to the contest, with CBS News saying that since 2023 the state Office for the Protection of the Constitution has classified the AfD Saxony-Anhalt as a "confirmed far-right extremist" organization.
CBS News adds that the office says the AfD chapter’s core positions violate fundamental principles of Germany's constitution and are “substantially permeated by the racist ideology of ethnopluralism.”
Ulrich Siegmund rejects the assessment, telling CBS News that “It monitors the opposition” and that “It is being used as a political instrument.”
Anadolu Ajansı also quotes Jana Hensel, an expert on eastern Germany, saying “Even after nearly 36 years of reunification, the East has not reached West Germany’s prosperity level,” as it links the AfD’s surge to economic fallout and migration.
What happens if AfD wins
The Guardian says state governments in Germany are represented in the Bundesrat and have broad powers over education, culture and domestic security, making an AfD takeover in Saxony-Anhalt a national concern for Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
“start deporting “irregular migrants” from “the first minute””
The Guardian reports that the AfD has vowed to start deporting “irregular migrants” from “the first minute” and to replace the state’s promotional slogan “Think Modern” with “Think German.”
DW reports that on September 6, 2026, the 1.7 million eligible voters in Saxony-Anhalt will decide whether AfD lead candidate Ulrich Siegmund can form a state government for the first time, with the Office for the Protection of the Constitution in Saxony Anhalt classifying the AfD as such in 2023.
DW says small parties will be kingmakers because if other parties fail to reach the 5% threshold, the likelihood increases that the AfD can govern alone, while it also notes that CDU’s “resolution of incompatibility” rejects cooperation with both the AfD and the Left Party.