Ulrich Siegmund, Alternative for Germany (AfD) candidate for state government in Saxony-Anhalt, with party youth activists
A victory for the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt, in eastern Germany, could transform a hitherto isolated force into a party with executive power and direct influence over German politics. Ulrich Siegmund, 35, a former member of the CDU, is considered the likely regional prime minister.
The Alternative for Germany (AfD) is in a position to lead, for the first time, a regional government in Germanyif it confirms in the September elections the advantage that polls attribute to it in Saxony-Anhalt, in the east of the country, where the far-right party appears consistently with 40% or more of voting intentions.
According to , this scenario is no longer a theoretical hypothesis. With the traditional parties in difficulties and the federal coalition led by the chancellor Friedrich Merz under pressurethe AfD could obtain enough votes to govern the region alone, with just over 2 million inhabitants.
That will also depend on the performance of smaller partiessuch as the Greens or the Liberal Democratic Party, which need to overcome the 5% barrier to enter the regional parliament.
Even if the AfD fails to gain a majority enough to govern alone, notes Politico, the only way to keep her out of the executive would be through a coalition among all other parties — a solution described as cumbersome and potentially unstable.
The arrival of the AfD in an executive role would have consequences beyond Saxony-Anhalt. Could affect the Bundesratthe upper house of the German parliament, made up of the 16 federal states, complicate cooperation between regional administrations and have a political impact on the Bundestag and the Federal Government.
An AfD victory would have repercussions on far-right populist movements in Europe and would be welcomed by the Trump Administrationwho has promoted the party’s cause, notes Politico
A AfD regional structure in Saxony-Anhalt has already been classified by the German internal intelligence service as “right-wing extremist“. A court issued, in February, a precautionary measure that prevents the use of this designation until there is a final decision on this classification.
The party’s main candidate, Ulrich Siegmund35 years old, former member of the CDU, is appointed as likely regional prime minister if AfD wins.
Siegmund afirma estar committed to the rule of law and says he will choose his team based on merit.
But the AfD’s 150-page regional program, presented in April, includes measures such as deportation of refugees or their transfer to “group homes”, despite Saxony-Anhalt being one of the most ethnically homogeneous regions in the country, with only 1 in 13 citizens with migratory origin.
The party also promises cut funding to public bodies of communication considered hostile and unpatriotic, ban symbols of “woke” cultureincluding LGBT flags in schools, and promote a “patriotic” culture. The program also criticizes the Bauhaus movement, with strong roots in the region.
In the demographic area, the AfD associates low birth rates with “sexual deviations and non-reproductive lifestyles” and promises tax benefits and free daycare for families made up of “a father, a mother and as many children as possible”, as part of the fight against what he describes as “the extinction of the German people”.
Although the foreign policy is the responsibility of the federal governmentSiegmund defende o end of sanctions against Russiathe return of teaching the Russian language to schools and the resumption of exchange programs with Russian students. In relation to Ukrainians, wants them to be treated as illegal migrantsand not as war refugees.
Saxony-Anhalt is located in eastern Germanyin the territory of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR), where the AfD has its strongest electoral base. In the 2025 federal legislative elections, the party was well above the national average.
AfD has not yet moderated the speechunlike other European populist movements, and the fear caused by the possibility of victory in Saxony-Anhalt seems to be, according to the text, the translate further into paralysis than in political preparation, says Politico.
