Reuters: The Alternative for Germany party surged into first place in state elections in Saxony-Anhalt on Sunday,exit polls showed, putting a far-right party on the cusp of power at state level for the first time since World War II…
Germany’s Far Right Just Misses Majority in Crucial State Election
If those results hold, the AfD, as the party is known by its German initials, could still assume power in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt in the coming weeks, depending on the negotiations among rival parties that have vowed not to support an AfD government…
Far-Right Victory in German State Sends a Signal to Europe
With elections scheduled across Europe next year, the striking success of the party, Alternative for Germany, could be a harbinger of further far-right victories, according to analysts, as well as a template for how they can be engineered. Its populist, anti-immigrant message echoes those of nationalist leaders in Britain, France, Italy and Spain, all countries where voters harbor many of the same grievances as those in Germany…
After Far-Right Election Breakthrough, Germany’s Merz Faces Painful Dilemma
The result, if confirmed, will face other parties on the right and the left with a stark choice: keep banding together to keep the AfD out of power despite deep political differences—a decades-old strategy known as the firewall—or let the AfD form a minority government for the first time.
Now the ball is with Chancellor Friedrich Merz and his center-right Christian Democratic Union. The path he takes could decide his fate and that of his government.
Merz has ruled out even passive cooperation with the AfD, but CDU lawmakers in Eastern Germany, where the far-right party is strongest, are divided about the firewall, setting the stage for a possible split in the party. Critics think ostracizing the AfD has alienated voters and forced the CDU to govern with parties that don’t support its agenda, leading to policy paralysis…
‘This could just be the beginning’: minorities fear first far-right win in German state election