(de-news.net) – The AfD has for the first time in the country’s history won a German state election, marking a major development in the political landscape of one of Germany’s eastern states. According to the latest projections, the AfD received 44.0 percent of the vote, more than doubling its previous result and establishing itself as the strongest political force in Saxony-Anhalt.
By contrast, the CDU of current Minister-President Sven Schulze fell to roughly half of its previous vote share, receiving 17.5 percent. The SPD was projected at 9.2 percent, followed by the Greens at 8.9 percent and the Left Party at 8.6 percent, with the Greens recording a modest improvement. The BSW stood at 5.1 percent, leaving it just above the threshold for parliamentary representation and potentially giving its final result considerable political significance. The FDP, which had participated in the previous governing coalition with the CDU and SPD, received only 2.5 percent and therefore failed to return to the state legislature.
Despite the scale of its electoral victory, the AfD appears to have narrowly missed an outright parliamentary majority. BSW lead candidate Claudia Wittig indicated that her party could envisage cooperation with the AfD on specific projects, but that position did not amount to support for an AfD-led government. Wittig made clear that she would not support AfD lead candidate Ulrich Siegmund for minister-president and was also hesitant about backing Schulze, instead favoring a candidate who stood outside conventional party politics. Wittig’s position indicated that any such engagement would be limited to specific issues rather than constitute an endorsement of Siegmund as minister-president. The contrasting positions leave the BSW potentially important to the parliamentary arithmetic while preserving a clear distinction between issue-based cooperation and formal governmental support. At the same time, Siegmund rejected the option of governing through a minority administration, leaving the formation of a stable majority particularly uncertain.
Siegmund argued that Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Federal Government had contributed to the AfD’s strong performance and interpreted the result as a broader political signal directed toward Berlin. He nevertheless maintained that the AfD remained prepared to work with other political actors if they were willing to pursue what he described as a fundamental change in political course. Following the election, Siegmund reinforced the party’s claim to participate in government while making clear that such participation would not come at the expense of its political identity. His position underscored the tension between the AfD’s demand for governmental responsibility and the reluctance of other parties to enter into a formal alliance with it.
Alice Weidel, the AfD’s co-leader, articulated an even broader claim to governmental responsibility, arguing that the election result represented a clear mandate for the party to assume power in Saxony-Anhalt and, ultimately, at the federal level. Whether the party can translate its state-level success into governmental participation will depend in part on the BSW’s final position and parliamentary status. If the BSW remains represented in the legislature, its presence could become a critical factor in determining whether a governing majority can be assembled and who ultimately becomes the next Minister-President.
Defeat puts SPD reform course under pressure
The election also prompted calls within the SPD for changes to the Federal Government’s reform agenda, reflecting the party’s assessment that the result was connected to broader dissatisfaction with the coalition’s policies. SPD leader Lars Klingbeil argued that the outcome demonstrated the need to reconsider the government’s political strategy and to engage more directly with the concerns reflected in the vote. SPD General Secretary Tim Klüssendorf identified the federal budget and the government’s pension and care reforms as areas requiring renewed political discussion. Within the SPD, the planned elimination of retirement without deductions after 45 years of contributions is particularly contentious and is regarded as especially problematic for the party’s traditional supporters.
SPD co-leader Bas emphasized that her party would continue pressing within the coalition for policies aimed at keeping everyday living costs affordable. She did not regard an immediate special party conference or an internal debate over the party leadership as a priority, arguing that the AfD’s electoral breakthrough required more urgent political attention. Despite the setback for the governing parties more broadly, the SPD itself recorded a modest improvement compared with five years earlier, reaching approximately 9 percent.
While acknowledging the CDU’s defeat, Schulze also pointed to the influence of policies pursued by the federal government and their possible effect on the state election. Within the CDU, the result was widely characterized as a serious setback. The head of the Federal Chancellery, Nina Warken, described the outcome as a turning point and argued that the coalition’s reforms needed additional time before their effects could become apparent. She maintained that the government should nevertheless remain committed to its reform program. Hoffmann, leader of the CSU parliamentary group, likewise cautioned against abandoning the reform agenda, arguing that the election result did not eliminate the need for structural changes. Radtke, chairman of the CDU’s labor wing, took a more critical view of the party’s response, arguing that familiar references to a difficult election night and the need for further analysis were no longer sufficient. He called for Merz’s federal CDU to address the concerns of workers more forcefully.
Schulze congratulated the AfD on becoming the strongest party and acknowledged that the CDU would have to confront the political consequences of the result. He initially declined to discuss his own political future, but demands for his resignation soon emerged from within the party. Longtime Saalekreis CDU official Michael Hayn described the result as catastrophic and argued that the leading candidate had to accept responsibility for the election campaign. Former Education Minister Eva Feußner likewise called on Schulze to relinquish the CDU state chairmanship. Hayn also urged Schulze to withdraw into a supporting role, suggesting that a step back could allow him to regain political strength.
In Saxony-Anhalt, 76.5 percent of the roughly 1.7 million eligible voters cast ballots. The turnout represented a substantial increase from the approximately 60 percent recorded in the previous state election, underscoring the unusually high level of participation accompanying the contest.
