Far right AfD wins Saxony Anhalt election with record 44% of votes
The far right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party won Sunday's state election in Saxony Anhalt with a record 44 per cent of the vote, delivering a devastating blow to Chancellor Friedrich Merz's Christian Democrats.
When a party classified as right wing extremist by federal authorities wins in one of the oldest strongholds of the Christian Democrats, it is not just a regional defeat — it is a tectonic shift in the country's political landscape. Saxony Anhalt, where the CDU ruled for decades, is now coloured in AfD's hues. And this is not an accident or a local phenomenon: it signals that a significant part of German society feels forgotten, disillusioned and ready to vote for radicals. The AfD's victory is not only a triumph for the far right but also a harsh verdict on the policies of centrist parties that failed to offer a convincing alternative.
Preliminary exit poll data released by German public broadcasters ARD and ZDF show that the AfD received between 44 and 44.5 per cent of the vote, more than 20 percentage points higher than in the previous election. Merz's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) came second with about 18.5 per cent, a sharp decline from its previous result. The Left Party received 9 to 9.5 per cent, the Greens 8.5 to 9 per cent, and the Social Democratic Party (SPD) 8 to 9 per cent. The Free Democratic Party (FDP), with just 2 to 2.5 per cent, fell significantly short of the 5 per cent threshold needed for parliamentary representation.
This surge brings the AfD close to an absolute majority. Of the 83 seats in the state parliament, the party is projected to win 39, just three seats short of the 42 needed to govern alone. Since several parties are still hovering around the 5 per cent threshold, the redistribution of seats could give the AfD an absolute majority. The result is all the more striking given Saxony Anhalt's political history. For many years, the state was led by the CDU, and the current government is a coalition of the CDU, SPD and FDP. The state parliament's term is five years.
Steffen Mau, a professor of sociology at Humboldt University in Berlin, said that Merz, upon taking office, promised to halve support for the AfD, but the opposite happened. "When Merz took office, he promised to halve support for the AfD, but this goal was not achieved. On the contrary, support for the AfD has grown significantly. The other parties have not yet found an effective way to counter the AfD," he said. Germany's Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) has officially classified the far right AfD as a confirmed right wing extremist organisation at the national level.
Saxony Anhalt is one of five eastern German states where support for the AfD is traditionally higher than in the west. Economic difficulties, demographic changes and nostalgia for GDR times have created fertile ground for populist and radical forces. The AfD's victory in this state puts additional pressure on Chancellor Merz, who has already seen his ratings fall at the federal level.
The FDP's failure and the weak results of the Greens and SPD show that traditional parties are losing voters' trust. The situation is exacerbated by the fact that the AfD, despite being monitored by the constitutional protection agency, continues to gain electoral support, calling into question the ability of democratic institutions to contain radicalisation.
As CCTV+ reports, the AfD's victory in Saxony Anhalt has sent a powerful signal across Germany. Populists are coming to power not through coups but through the ballot box, and this makes their triumph even more alarming. The future of German politics now depends on whether centrist parties can rethink their strategies and offer voters real solutions before radicals exploit their weakness for good.
