The BSW top candidate Wittig shakes the hand of election winner Siegmund (AfD) on election evening.
Federal government criticizes Trump's statements about the AfD election victory
The federal government has rejected US President Donald Trump's statements about the AfD's election victory in Saxony-Anhalt. “We Germans decide for ourselves how we deal with migration and also who we vote for,” said the Federal Government’s Transatlantic Coordinator, Metin Hakverdi (SPD), to the “Tagesspiegel”. “We don’t need advice from the White House.” Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) postponed a phone call with Trump planned for Wednesday. According to government spokesman Stefan Kornelius, it should be about the 25th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks in the USA; a new date has not yet been set. Kornelius referred to statements made by the Chancellor in the past: Merz had often pointed out in an “abstract manner” that “interventions or comments on the German domestic political situation, especially during elections,” were “out of the question” for him.
The parliamentary managing director of the SPD parliamentary group, Dirk Wiese, had previously demanded a reaction from the federal government to Trump's statements: "We have to talk about it," he said on Wednesday. "This interference is unacceptable. I don't think we as the federal government can tolerate that."
Trump congratulated the AfD after its election victory in Saxony-Anhalt and spoke of a movement “on the rise”. “Wow, the populist party in Germany had a really big night,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform. He also used the abbreviation “MGGA” followed by three exclamation marks in his text, which probably stands for “Make Germany Great Again”.
After the election in Saxony-Anhalt, the AfD and BSW want to hold talks
The BSW Saxony-Anhalt has accepted the invitation to talks with the AfD. “But it’s about substantive cooperation, not coalition talks,” said top candidate Claudia Wittig to the F.A.Z. The CDU also received an invitation from the AfD, but rejected the offer to talk. “We reject cooperation with the AfD Saxony-Anhalt, which the State Office for the Protection of the Constitution has classified as right-wing extremist,” said the CDU.
Roland Koch open to debate about AfD ban
After the AfD's strong performance, former Hesse Prime Minister Roland Koch (CDU) appeared open to a debate about banning the AfD party. “I was always against it, but now I'm torn about it,” Koch told the news magazine “Focus”. He personally still believes that the AfD can be defeated politically.
Police unions demand protection of sensitive data in a possible AfD government
Following the AfD's election success, leading police unions are calling for stricter measures to protect secret information. “An AfD-led government in Saxony-Anhalt can become a real threat to national security and the functioning of the democratic constitutional state,” said the chairman of the Association of German Criminal Police Officers (BDK), Dirk Peglow, to the “Handelsblatt”.
Second charge for attempted murder at the Holocaust memorial
Federal prosecutors have filed charges against a man arrested in May in connection with an attempted murder at the Berlin Holocaust Memorial. The Syrian national Khalaf A. is accused of aiding and abetting attempted murder and grievous bodily harm, the Federal Prosecutor General announced.
Schulze wants to forego Saxony-Anhalt's chairmanship of the Prime Minister's Conference
After the AfD's election victory, Prime Minister Sven Schulze (CDU), who is still in office, advocates forgoing the rotating chairmanship of the Prime Minister's Conference (MPK) from October onwards. “In view of the outcome of the state elections last Sunday and the subsequent uncertainty about the progress of the government formation in Saxony-Anhalt, it no longer seems appropriate to assume responsibility for the presidency on October 1, 2026,” writes Schulze in a letter.
Klüssendorf: The SPD will pay more attention to education
SPD General Secretary Tim Klüssendorf is self-critical. “We govern and at the same time education policy is getting worse,” he says. Klüssendorf announces that the SPD will pay more attention to the issue of education in the future.
Hoffmann on the AfD: They are the Moscow puppet box
CSU regional group leader Alexander Hoffmann accuses the AfD of making false statements. With regard to the AfD's attitudes towards Russia, Hoffmann says: "You are the Moscow puppet box. And you are dangerous for our country."
Reichinnek: The government has no plan
The parliamentary group leader of the Left, Heidi Reichinnek, attacked the government in her speech: “The budget shows that you have no plan.” The federal government's record is “social coldness and despair, anger and powerlessness”.
Chrupalla: Merz government has caused “national bankruptcy”.
The AfD party leader Tino Chrupalla speaks of a “state bankruptcy” into which the Merz government is maneuvering the country. Growth can only be observed in the “war industry”, which is subsidized by the state.
