AfD becomes the first party in Saxony-Anhalt with a historic increase in votes

Voting ended at 18:00 local time in the state, where 1.7 million voters have the right to vote.

According to the first exit poll announced by German First Television ARD, AfD increased its vote rate by 23.7 points compared to the elections held 5 years ago and came first with 44.5 percent.

AfD, which received 20.8 percent of the votes in the 2021 elections, has been in the state parliament in Saxony-Anhalt since 2016.

This result means that a far-right party became a government partner in a state for the first time in Germany after World War II.

The fact that the AfD will come to power as a coalition partner in the state is not just a state election victory, it marks a historical break in terms of the political order that has been formed in Germany since 1949.

However, other parties do not plan to form a joint government with the AfD.

The Christian Democratic Union Party (CDU) lost 18.6 points compared to 2021 and became the second party with 18.5 percent of the votes.

The Left Party also experienced a 1.5 point decrease in its vote rate compared to the last election, coming in third with 9.5 percent, and the Greens coming out fourth with 9 percent.

The Social Democratic Party (SPD), which lost 0.4 points of votes compared to the previous election, became the fifth party with 8 percent.

The Alliance for Social Justice and Economic Understanding (BSW) also gained the right to participate in the parliament with 5 percent of the votes.

The Free Democratic Party (FDP) lost 4.4 points, received 2 percent of the votes and could not pass the threshold.

Final election results are expected to be announced tonight or tomorrow.