AfD seeks partners after falling short of majority in Saxony-Anhalt
The far-right party won 43.8 per cent in preliminary results but needs support to form the state’s next government.
Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany is seeking support to govern Saxony-Anhalt after preliminary election results left it three seats short of a majority.
The AfD won 43.8 per cent of the vote and is projected to hold 39 seats in the 83-seat state parliament. A majority requires 42 seats, and the result has not been finalised.
AfD figures said discussions had begun with other parties, parliamentary groups and individual lawmakers. State leader Ulrich Siegmund said the party had received a “clear mandate to govern”, while deputy parliamentary leader Beatrix von Storch urged opponents to enter negotiations.
The AfD says it is also speaking with dissatisfied members of the conservative CDU group. A possible informal arrangement involving the five-seat BSW party has been reported, which could allow the AfD to lead a minority government, but no agreement has been confirmed.
Most German parties refuse to co-operate with the AfD. The party’s Saxony-Anhalt branch is classified as “right-wing extremist” by domestic intelligence, a designation it rejects.
An AfD-led state government would be Germany’s first headed by a far-right party since World War Two, giving it authority over areas including policing and local education. The party also won neighbouring Thuringia’s 2024 election but could not form a government.
