Elections in Saxony-Anhalt: AfD triumphs, CDU in sharp decline

According to the provisional results of the regional elections in Saxony-Anhalt, the AfD reached 43.8%, the CDU 17.2%, the Linke 8.6%, the SPD 9.3%, the FDP 2.6%, the Greens 8.9%. The rossobruni of Bsw manage to exceed the 5 percent threshold reaching 5.3%. With this situation, the AfD wins 39 seats and does not have the absolute majority to govern (42 seats), the CDU 15, the Linke, the SPD and the Greens 8 each. It remains to be seen whether there will be an agreement with BSW which has 5 seats.

The time of Ulrich Siegmund, the 35-year-old who dreamed of governing in a single-party government, with a far-right program that also appeals to young people, therefore seems ever closer. The AfD's rising star made radical promises and in the evening declared: "I don't know yet if I will be minister president, but we have already written history." If a government fails to form in Saxony-Anhalt, new elections could also be considered. "If necessary there would simply be new elections, and then we would get 50 or 55 percent," Siegmund said. “Because the future is Alternative fuer Deutschland,” he added.

On September 20th there will be elections in Berlin and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. But in the meantime, if Siegmund were to come to govern in Saxony he could begin to implement his program: stop compulsory schooling, separate classes for children with disabilities and migrants, cut funding for the public radio and television service and funding for churches.

In Magdeburg, the Christian Democrats fell to less than 18%, half of the preferences last time. And the party of outgoing governor Sven Schulze and chancellor Friedrich Merz is questioning itself. From the capital, the governing parties Greens and Linke blockade the so-called Brandmauer, the sanitary cordon, "no collaboration with a far-right party". The result of Sahra Wagenknecht's BSW will be decisive, as she has already reached out to Siegmund in the heat of the moment. It should have exceeded the entry threshold. And the political party that left Linke contesting aid to Ukraine will act as the balance.

After the electoral victory in Saxony-Anhalt, the AfD intends to govern and is looking for partners to do so. "We will send proposals for dialogue to all parties. We will see who will give us a hand," said party co-leader Tino Chrupalla. He also launched an appeal to the CDU: "I believe it must examine its conscience on what and what consequences to draw from this disastrous electoral result."

Friedrich Merz calls the CDU together to discuss and metabolize the heavy defeat suffered. Regional governor Sven Schulze placed the blame on the federal government which, he said, ended up hindering his election campaign. Merz followed the arrival of the ballots from the party headquarters in Berlin, without making any public statements. The result represents a further blow at a time when his approval ratings are in sharp decline. AfD co-leader Weidel said at a press conference: "The CDU has suffered a debacle, a result that is reflected at the federal level, people have lost confidence, no chancellor before had been as unpopular as Friedrich Merz, who has become a great burden for gradual development in Germany."

The leader of the League Matteo Salvini speaks of a "sensational success" which demonstrates that "another Europe is possible". Roberto Vannacci, leader of Futuro Nazionale, exults: "Europe is changing" and then attacks Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who "has an ulcer" and warns the entire continent: "Let no one sleep". The vote in East Germany opens a crack in the majority. Salvini's toast immediately finds Antonio Tajani's wall, far from a force "antithetical to liberal and Western values". His statement, observes the blue leader, Merz's European ally, is "bad news". Meloni chooses silence. Among the opposition the black wave is scary. "The European Union is at risk", warns Carlo Calenda, evoking the return of nationalisms that look "to past totalitarianisms" with a strength never seen in the post-war period. Giuseppe Conte (M5s) finds the roots of the vote in the choices of Europe itself, guilty in his words of having "thought about rearmament instead of social issues". And now that the "black cloud" is gathering over Saxony-Anhalt, fueled by "xenophobia" and "nationalist demagogy", Riccardo Magi (+Europe) warns that stopping it is a "duty" in Italy too. "Fear won" observes Filippo Sensi (Pd), and the record turnout that accompanies the rise of the Afd "questions us and slaps us".