AfD wins state election in Saxony-Anhalt with 43.8 percent

The AfD clearly won the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt. According to the preliminary final result, she received 43.8 percent of the vote. This means that it has more than doubled its result compared to the previous election in 2021 and achieved the best result ever in a state election.

Far behind, Prime Minister Sven Schulze's CDU is in second place with 17.2 percent. It is the worst result the party has ever achieved in Saxony-Anhalt.

FDP is out, BSW is in

Four other parties are also represented in the Magdeburg state parliament: The SPD has 9.3 percent. The Greens achieved 8.9 percent - it is the party's best result in a state election in Saxony-Anhalt. The Left received 8.6 percent - and thus performed worse than in the last election.

With 2.6 percent, the FDP clearly fails to meet the five percent hurdle. The BSW, which took part for the first time, narrowly managed to get into the state parliament with 5.3 percent.

This gives the AfD 39 seats in the state parliament, the CDU 15. The SPD, the Greens and the Left each have 8 seats. The BSW receives 5 seats. Voter turnout was 77.8 percent (2021: 60.3 percent) - a record. Almost 1.7 million eligible voters were allowed to vote.

AfD needs votes from other parties

Now the formation of a government should be exciting. AfD top candidate Ulrich Siegmund had always stated that he would prefer to govern alone. On the evening of the election, various AfD leaders emphasized that the election result was a clear government mandate for the party.

But she cannot achieve this goal on her own. So she depends on outside voices. However, the CDU, SPD, Greens and Left had already rejected cooperation.

BSW wants to talk to AfD

Whether the AfD comes to power will therefore depend crucially on the BSW. It is the only party that has shown itself open to supporting the AfD. BSW top candidate Thomas Schulze emphasized that he was ready for talks with the AfD. "We said we would talk to all parties. That includes the AfD."

There are many similarities. "We already have some overlaps, especially on the Russia issue, where we say we are against these sanctions that are literally ruining our economy." Like the AfD, the BSW also wants “inexpensive energy” - even if the influence of a state government on this is rather limited. However, there are differences when it comes to the topics of education and economics. It is unclear whether the BSW would also elect AfD man Siegmund as prime minister.

Siegmund against compromises

However, close cooperation will be difficult if Siegmund is to be believed. He insists that he does not want to make any compromises for a coalition. Siegmund called the BSW's offer for a non-partisan Prime Minister on ZDF on Sunday evening "Wurschtel". The AfD does not want to give up its values ​​and goals “for any power games”. He ruled out coalitions with extensive compromises.

If a more suitable coalition partner cannot be found, he said: "If necessary, there will be new elections." The party leadership, on the other hand, sounds a little more conciliatory. Federal spokesman Tino Chrupalla did not rule out tolerance by the BSW. However, he has not yet had any discussions with the party. Chrupalla claimed that a lot of things were unclear at BSW.

BSW against Schulze as Prime Minister

Theoretically, the BSW could also support a coalition of all other parties, i.e. CDU, SPD, Left and Greens - but would then probably have to re-elect the incumbent CDU Prime Minister Schulze. However, this is extremely questionable, because the party founded by Sahra Wagenknecht would apparently prefer to help the AfD come to power if in doubt.

“We want a non-partisan prime minister,” said the second BSW top candidate, Claudia Wittig. "I don't want to vote for Mr. Siegmund and I just as little or maybe even less want to vote for Mr. Schulze," she added. Wittig also said that in view of the AfD's electoral success, in her view it would be "completely undemocratic not to involve them in the government in any way."

Party classified as right-wing extremist wins election

The election was under special observation - also internationally. The AfD, which relied heavily on its top candidate Ulrich Siegmund and positive messages ("Everything is possible") in the election campaign, has been classified as firmly right-wing extremist by the State Office for the Protection of the Constitution since 2023. The party's agitation is directed against "essential principles of the free democratic basic order", in particular against "the guarantee of human dignity enshrined in the Basic Law". The AfD is taking action against the classification; the procedure is currently suspended.

If the AfD comes to power, it would be the first time in the history of the Federal Republic that a party classified as right-wing extremist governs a federal state. The fact that a party classified as right-wing extremist wins an election is no longer a novelty. The AfD had already achieved this in the state elections in Thuringia in 2024.

What's next?

According to the state constitution, the new state parliament must meet no later than the 30th day after the election, i.e. October 6th. Then the terms of office of the ministers and the prime minister officially end. However, they are obliged to continue in office until a new government is elected.

There is no deadline by which a new Prime Minister must be elected. He is elected by secret ballot without debate. Whoever gets the majority of the members of the state parliament in the first round of voting is elected. In the event that the first election fails, deadlines apply: another round of voting must take place within seven days. If an election does not take place, the state parliament will decide within a further 14 days whether the electoral period will be ended. If this is not decided by a majority of the members, a new round of voting will take place immediately - then whoever receives the majority of the votes cast is elected.