AfD won 43.8 percent. votes and decisively won the elections in Saxony-Anhalt. The party thus doubled its result from the previous elections. The CDU took second place with 17.2 percent. The SPD (9.3%), the Greens (8.9%), the Left (8.6%) and BSW (5.3%) also entered the landtag. The turnout was 77.8 percent.
However, the AfD did not win the majority allowing it to form a government on its own. She missed out on a few seats in the 83-seat state parliament. Its leader in Saxony-Anhalt, Ulrich Siegmund, had previously declared that he wanted to rule without coalition partners. We wrote about possible post-election scenarios here.
Chairman of the Central Council of Jews: I am terrified
Josef Schuster, chairman of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, reacted strongly to the election results. He pointed out that the AfD is classified by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution as a confirmed far-right organization.
I am horrified by this result, Schuster said. As he emphasized, in recent months it has been clearly visible what goals the AfD is pursuing. Everyone who voted for her today - despite these goals or because of them - is responsible for this result, he emphasized.
Schuster also warned of the possible consequences of AfD influence on education policy. AfD announced, among others: changes in the school system, greater emphasis on patriotic education, traditional values and national identity, and the creation of separate classes for children who are refugees and students with disabilities. The party wants to focus on stronger exposure of German history.
Charlotte Knobloch: It's hard for me to recognize my homeland
Charlotte Knobloch, former president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany and current president of the Israeli Religious Community in Munich and Upper Bavaria, spoke particularly emotionally. The 93-year-old Holocaust survivor admitted that it is difficult for her to recognize her own homeland after such election results.
The fact that right-wing extremists could win elections in Germany again in this way, I could not imagine even in my worst nightmares, she said.
Knobloch saw the election results in Saxony-Anhalt as a signal that the foundations of German democracy are in danger. "It scares me," she said. She called on the parties of the democratic center and citizens, whom she described as "true patriots", to become more involved in the defense of democracy.
Eva Umlauf, chairwoman of the International Auschwitz Committee, also spoke about the election results. The 83-year-old former Auschwitz prisoner admitted that it was particularly difficult for Holocaust survivors that the far-right party had once again become the strongest force in the German state parliament.
We, Holocaust survivors, never considered this possible, she said.
Churches warn against nationalism and divisions
Representatives of churches also commented on the election results. Friedrich Kramer, the Evangelical state bishop, spoke about the deep division of German society. In his opinion, the future government must, above all, protect human dignity, law and minority rights.
In turn, the Catholic bishop of Magdeburg, Gerhard Feige, warned against the growing prejudice, isolation and selfishness. In his opinion, opposition to the "nationalistic and xenophobic spirit" is particularly important today.
Migration organizations: Migration is not a culture war
Organizations representing migrants also expressed concern. Their representatives warned against exclusion and racism.
The umbrella organization for migration organizations in eastern Germany stressed that public concerns should be addressed through concrete political action. However, this cannot mean pitting individual groups against each other or stigmatizing people based on their origin, religion or migration history.
Migration is not an exception or a culture war. This is a social reality - it was emphasized.
Meanwhile, AfD co-chairman Tino Chrupalla announced on Sunday evening a reduction in funding for some associations and non-governmental organizations. He talked about entities that - in his opinion - do not create value in Germany, but pursue "indoctrinated politics".
Business warns against the consequences of AfD rule
The concerns are not only about social and political issues. Business representatives also warn about the possible consequences of the AfD victory for the economy. Ralf Wintergerst, president of the German digital industry association Bitkom, pointed out that the digital sector needs openness, diversity and international cooperation. Companies invest primarily where they have good conditions for conducting business and can count on access to qualified employees - both from Germany and abroad.
Demonstrations against the AfD
In response to the election results, demonstrations took place in several German cities on Sunday. In Frankfurt am Main, about 2,000 people gathered on the Römerberg. people - according to the organizers, there were 2.5 thousand of them. Demonstrators protested against the far right and called for consideration of a procedure to ban the AfD.
In Hamburg, the police estimated the number of participants at just over a thousand. The demonstrators protested against the shift of German politics to the right.
Similar protests also took place in Berlin and Mainz. Another large demonstration at the Brandenburg Gate was announced for Monday evening. The police expect about 5,000. participants.
People with a neo-Nazi past around the AfD leader
The AfD victory in Saxony-Anhalt also drew attention to Ulrich Siegmund's entourage. According to the findings of the German media, four people associated with the AfD leader's political support were in the past active in the Heimattreue Deutsche Jugend (HDJ), a neo-Nazi organization banned in 2009. Among them is Patrick Harr, spokesman for the AfD faction and the national group, and Laurens Nothdurft, a faction employee and party lawyer.
German media recall that HDJ was banned by the federal authorities due to its ideological closeness to National Socialism. Other people associated with this organization in the past are also said to be working in Siegmund's circle.
Siegmund himself currently plays a key role in the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt. Before the elections, he announced that his goal was to take power on his own. The final result – 43.8 percent. – gave the party a historic victory, but did not provide it with a majority in the state parliament. Coalition talks may be extremely difficult because the remaining parties rule out traditional cooperation with the AfD. A minority government, a long-term deadlock, or even early elections cannot be ruled out.
