The upcoming state election draws attention to Saxony-Anhalt - and to problems that also affect other regions of Germany.
Oldest population
One of them is demographic change. In no other federal state is the average age as high as here. It is 48.3 years - the national average is 44.9 years. And the population will continue to age: by 2040, the average age could rise to 49.9 years.
The reasons are the low birth rate and emigration. Since reunification, the population has shrunk by around a quarter. Many young people, especially well-educated women, are moving away. According to estimates by the Federal Statistical Office, the population could fall below the two million mark by 2031, although in recent years more people have moved in than out.
The population decline is already having consequences for the labor market, infrastructure and people's everyday lives.
A lot of land, few people
2.12 million people live in Saxony-Anhalt. A quarter of the population is concentrated in Magdeburg, Halle (Saale) and Dessau-Roßlau. At the same time, the country is sparsely populated: on average, 104 people live per square kilometer; the national average is around 234. Only Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Brandenburg are less densely populated.
The result: In smaller towns it is becoming more difficult to maintain supermarkets, doctor's offices and cultural offerings. At the same time there is a lack of staff. The shortage of skilled workers is - as in all of Germany - a major issue.
Immigration is important for the labor market
Migration/integration is by far the most important election issue. Comparatively few people with a migrant background live in Saxony-Anhalt: around eleven percent of the population have a migrant background, compared to around 30 percent nationwide.
Around eight percent of the population in the country are foreign citizens. The number of asylum seekers is also declining. From January to June, around 1,000 asylum seekers came to Saxony-Anhalt, a third less than the previous year.
Immigration can slow down the decline in the working population, but cannot alone compensate for it. People with a history of immigration in Saxony-Anhalt are, on average, younger than the rest of the population in the state. The proportion with a university degree is also higher in comparison: in 2023, almost 16 percent of 25 to 64 year olds with a migration history who live in Saxony-Anhalt had a university degree, compared to seven percent of people without migration experience.
The importance for medical care is particularly visible. According to a survey by the Integration Media Service, one in four doctors does not have a German passport. In the Altmarkkreis Salzwedel the proportion is almost 30 percent. The medical association warns that without foreign doctors, comprehensive care in rural areas would not be possible.
However, immigration alone does not solve the skilled worker problem. Training, higher employment participation and successful integration are also crucial. At the same time, advice centers report a high number of racist attacks. According to the Mobile Victim Advisory Service, four to five right-wing attacks per week were registered in Saxony-Anhalt in 2025.
Education policy as a challenge
There is also a great shortage of skilled workers in the education sector. Almost 6,000 of the 14,100 public school teachers are 55 years old or older. The teaching coverage in November 2025 was 93.7 percent - mathematically, this means that around every 16th lesson was canceled.
At the same time, the country needs to qualify more young people for training and work. In the Education Monitor 2025, Saxony-Anhalt achieved a top spot for school quality. At the same time, a total of 9.3 percent of graduates from general education schools left without a recognized qualification in 2024/25. The gap is particularly large among school leavers with foreign citizenship: 38.1 percent left school without a qualification, compared to 17.8 percent nationwide.
This makes education a central question for the future: How does Saxony-Anhalt get enough teachers? And how does the country manage to qualify as many young people as possible for training and work?
Economy in transition
The economy is growing slightly again, but is facing profound structural change. In the first quarter of 2026, economic output rose by 0.3 percent. At the same time, global crises are hitting the traditionally industrial country with its so-called Central German Chemical Triangle.
Companies struggle with high labor and energy costs, among other things. According to the regional association, every second company in the chemical industry wants to reduce its investments in the next two years; More than one in three are considering investments abroad.
But there are also bright spots. Saxony-Anhalt's specialized companies were able to maintain their exports to the USA comparatively well in 2025. And the country has been a pioneer in the expansion of renewable energies for years: they cover more than 60 percent of annual gross electricity consumption. The wind energy industry is an important employer.
Live cheaply - but earn less
Saxony-Anhalt cannot score points in a nationwide comparison with good salaries. On average, people with gross annual earnings of 41,163 euros earn less than in the entire Federal Republic (54,066 euros).
But Saxony-Anhalt also has to spend significantly less on housing. According to a study by the German Economic Institute, the real disposable income per inhabitant was around 26,700 euros in 2023. Although this is lower than the national average of 27,600 euros, it is higher than the overall average in eastern Germany, which was 26,100 euros.
And the country doesn't have to shy away from looking to the west. In the Hanseatic cities of Hamburg (26,100 euros) and Bremen (25,100 euros), the high rents have an impact on real disposable income. Compared to Saxony-Anhalt, there is less money to live on in both cities - because of the higher housing costs.
Housing is not as cheap in any other German federal state as it is in this large country. Calculated per square meter, rental and condominiums in particular are the cheapest in Germany.
Politically under special observation
Saxony-Anhalt is facing problems that many regions of Germany are familiar with. These coincide with a political mood in which the AfD is making strong gains. In the state elections, it could become the strongest force in a German state parliament for the first time. The ARD pre-election poll puts them at 42 percent, well ahead of the CDU, which has 22 percent.
For the other parties, forming a government could become a difficult calculation. According to the CDU's incompatibility decision, the current Prime Minister Sven Schulze is not allowed to form a coalition with the AfD and the Left Party. At the same time, it is unclear whether there will be enough for a CDU-led government with other parties.
Saxony-Anhalt could thus become a political test case: How far does the demarcation of the democratic parties extend - and what happens if the majorities are not sufficient?
