Al Jazeera – Breaking News, World News and Video from Al Jazeera
· collected 2026-09-06 · by Blow
The Alternative for Germany (AfD) party won the election in Saxony-Anhalt with 44.5% of the vote, more than twice the amount received by the incumbent Christian Democrats (CDU), who got 18.5%. The AfD has never participated in a ruling coalition in Germany before, and it's unclear if they can form a government despite their clear mandate to govern. According to exit polls, the AfD narrowly missed securing an absolute majority in the state parliament. This result is seen as another blow to the authority of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, whose popularity has declined due to his struggling coalition government.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-07,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
In a closely watched regional election, Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is poised to gain power in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt. The AfD is expected to secure at least 44% of the vote, more than double its showing five years ago, according to exit polls. This would give the party a significant majority and potentially mark the first time a far-right party has held state-level power in Germany since World War II.
The AfD's rise to prominence is seen as a threat to mainstream parties, including Chancellor Friedrich Merz's Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which is currently leading the state. The party's success is attributed to its promise to restrict immigration and restore ties with Russia, as well as its charismatic leader, Ulrich Siegmund.
A victory for the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt would be a significant milestone for the party, which has been gaining momentum in recent years. It could also have broader implications for German politics, potentially leading to a shift towards a harder line on immigration and European integration.
Experts warn that an AfD government could lead to significant changes in areas such as education and foreign policy, including creating separate classrooms for refugees and promoting a patriotism agenda that focuses less on the country's Nazi past. The party has also been accused of adopting tactics inspired by President Trump, including casting doubt on the integrity of absentee voting.
The outcome of the election is still uncertain, but it is clear that the AfD's rise to power would be a historic event with significant implications for Germany and Europe.
Written for “Far-Right Party's Rise in Germany” on 2026-09-07,
grounded in this article and the 41 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The article's own words the score was based on. Each is quoted
verbatim and was checked against the article text before being
stored, so you can find it in the original.
-
the reality is the AfD has got the lion's share of the votes in this election, according to the exit polls.
right neutral reporting of fact
-
Siegmund said he wanted to extend a hand to all parties willing to bring about a fundamental political transformation in the state.
right reporting Siegmund's words without criticism or context
-
The AfD has never participated in a ruling coalition in Germany’s 16 states nor its federal government, as all other mainstream parties refuse to work with it, a policy infamously known as the “firewall”.
right neutral reporting of fact
-
AfD has tapped into a sense of nostalgia for communist East Germany, as well as lingering resentment about the enduring wealth gap with the west decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
left framing the AfD's success as a response to structural issues
-
Siegmund has often ridden the iconic local Simson bike, including to the polling booth on Sunday in his hometown of Tangermuende.
right neutral reporting of fact
Leaning score +0.35 for article 6220 (medium confidence, 5 verified quotes) · logged 2026-09-07
The Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has won the election in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt, according to exit polls.
uncertain
party → win → polls
The AfD won 44.5 percent of the vote, exit polls for the ARD broadcaster suggested on Sunday.
uncertain
polls → win → Sunday
That is more than twice the 18.5 percent for the incumbent centre-right Christian Democrats (CDU), led by Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
asserted
That → lead → Merz
“We have achieved exactly what we wanted to achieve,” said AfD’s lead candidate Ulrich Siegmund.
asserted
Siegmund → achieve → what
“We have made history in this state.”
asserted
We → make → state
AfD co-leader Alice Weidel also hailed a “historic” result, which has given the far-right party a clear mandate to govern, though it was not immediately clear whether it would be able to form a government.
asserted
it → hail → government
“The reality is the AfD has got the lion’s share of the votes in this election, according to the exit polls.
uncertain
AfD → get → polls
But the question is: is it enough to get them control of the state?
asserted
them → get → state
Right now, we cannot say for sure,” reported Al Jazeera’s Dominic Kane from Magdeburg in eastern Germany.
asserted
Kane → say → Germany
Exit polls suggest the party has narrowly missed securing an absolute majority in the state parliament in Magdeburg.
asserted
party → suggest → Magdeburg
Siegmund said he wanted to extend a hand to all parties willing to bring about a fundamental political transformation in the state.
asserted
he → say → state
However, the AfD will not bend to other parties’ will, he stressed.
asserted
he → bend → will
The AfD has never participated in a ruling coalition in Germany’s 16 states nor its federal government, as all other mainstream parties refuse to work with it, a policy infamously known as the “firewall”.
asserted
parties → participate → firewall
Blow to Merz’s authority
Sunday’s result is another blow to the authority of Merz, whose popularity has declined as his coalition government struggles to revive growth in Europe’s largest economy.
asserted
government → decline → economy
His centre-right CDU came a distant second.
asserted
CDU → come → ?
Depending on the eventual count, the CDU’s state leader, Sven Schulze, would hope to still be able to form a new multi-party coalition to block the AfD from power.
asserted
leader → depend → power
AfD has tapped into a sense of nostalgia for communist East Germany, as well as lingering resentment about the enduring wealth gap with the west decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
asserted
AfD → tap → 1989
In line with the sometimes defiant sense of local “Ossie pride”, Siegmund has often ridden the iconic local Simson bike, including to the polling booth on Sunday in his hometown of Tangermuende.
asserted
Siegmund → ride → Tangermuende
While Siegmund has been dubbed the friendly face of the AfD, his campaign promises have been radical, including targeting undocumented migrants with a “remigration and deportation offensive” from day one.
asserted
promises → dub → day
AfD’s agenda
The party’s anti-“woke” agenda also includes promises to replace LGBTQ pride rainbow flags at public schools with the German standard and to change history teaching to lessen the emphasis on Hitler’s Third Reich.
asserted
agenda → include → Reich
In order to replace migrant workers, the AfD wants to lure back German expatriates, while offering “baby bonuses” for families to reverse the shrinking population in the small state of 2.1 million.
asserted
AfD → replace → million
The German Economic Institute has warned that the AfD’s immigration policy would be “ruinous” for Saxony-Anhalt, which is highly reliant on foreign-born workers, especially in the health sector.
asserted
which → warn → sector
Others have voiced fears that an AfD-run state security apparatus could leak sensitive information to Russia, which Moscow could use to destabilise Germany.
uncertain
Moscow → voice → Germany
The Kremlin “makes no secret of the fact that the AfD is the most important instrument for destabilising Germany for [Russian President Vladimir] Putin,” Thuringia state interior minister Georg Maier told the Handelsblatt daily newspaper.
asserted
Maier → make → newspaper
