Headline Roundup • September 8th, 2026
'Far Right' AfD Delivers Massive Win in East German State, Falls Short of Majority
Summary from the AllSides News Team
The populist "far right" Alternative for Germany (AfD) party delivered a decisive victory in Germany's eastern state Saxony-Anhalt on Sunday, though it fell short of a parliamentary majority.
The Results: AfD won 43.8% of the vote and gained 16 seats in the state's parliament, for a total of 39. German Chancellor Frederich Merz's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party finished second with 17.2% and lost 25 of its 40 parliamentary seats. Notably, the democratic socialist The Left (DL) lost 4 seats, and the populist "far left" Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) won 5.3% – enough to enter parliament and take 5 seats. Election turnout was a record high 76.5%.
Political Context: Several mainstream parties in Germany have vowed to form a "firewall" against AfD and never form a coalition with it, meaning its only path to power would be through a majority. In May 2025, Germany's domestic intelligence agency, the BfV, designated AfD as a right-wing extremist organization. In Germany's most recent national elections in February 2025, AfD surged to finish second to the CDU with 21% of the vote, dominating in Germany's eastern states. Previously, in September 2024, AfD delivered a historic result in the east German state of Thuringia. Members of the Trump administration, like Secretary of State Rubio, Vice President Vance, and former government efficiency lead Elon Musk, have previously appeared sympathetic to AfD's platform.
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BSW as Kingmaker?: Media commentators and analysts have said AfD's best path to governing could be a coalition with the newly-founded populist left-wing BSW party, which overlaps with AfD on a more hardline approach to immigration. BSW has said it would not elect AfD's Saxony-Anhalt leader, Ulrich Siegmund, as governor, but on Sunday said, "The firewall does not interest us, and we will speak with all parties." Qatari outlet Al Jazeera (Lean Left bias), The New York Times (Lean Left), and The European Conservative (Right) highlighted the prospect of a BSW-AfD coalition in analyses.
EU Leaders React: Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that in Poland only "idiots or traitors" would celebrate the result. French Finance Minister Roland Lescure called it "very, very worrying." Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said it shows that "another Europe is possible." Former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán called it "a great night for Germany and Europe."
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Featured Coverage of this Story
Matthias Schräder/AP
The populist, far-right, anti-immigration Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) has surged to a resounding victory in a crucial state election in Germany, but fell just short of winning a majority in its quest to form the country's first far-right state government since the second world war.
The party of Germany's unpopular chancellor Friedrich Merz, the Christian Democrats (CDU), slumped to a disastrous result in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt.
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has won a decisive victory in Germany's eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt, far ahead of mainstream rivals.
But preliminary results show it has gained 43.8% of the vote to the conservative CDU's 17.2%, falling short of an outright majority needed to govern alone. Tricky negotiations on who will run the state lie ahead.
AfD's charismatic leader in the state, Ulrich Siegmund, said it was "sensational" and added that the party had won a mandate to govern.
Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) has won the Saxony-Anhalt election decisively, bringing a party that has spent years behind the Brandmauer, Germany's political firewall, to within just three seats of governing a federal state alone for the first time.
Amid a record turnout of close to 78%, AfD won 43.8% of the vote and 39 of the 83 seats in the Landtag. The CDU, which had secured 37.1% in 2021, fell to 17.2% and was left with 15 MPs. The SPD won eight seats, the Greens another eight, Die Linke eight,...
