Germany's Far-Right AfD Seeks Partners to Govern After State Election Win

Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany is asking other parties to help it govern Saxony-Anhalt after winning the eastern state's election but falling short of an outright majority.

“

Politics always means compromise.

The anti-immigration, pro-Russia party won nearly 44% of the vote and 39 of the legislature's 83 seats, according to official results. Its platform includes deporting immigrants, ending support for Ukraine and abandoning the euro. The result also highlighted the unpopularity of Chancellor Friedrich Merz's governing coalition and alarmed neighbouring France and Poland.

AfD co-leader Tino Chrupalla appealed to lawmakers from the Christian Democratic Union to make a centre-right conservative majority possible. “Politics always means compromise,” he told broadcaster ARD. He also said the CDU needed to draw conclusions from what he called a disastrous election result and argued that partisan games should end, referring to the policy known as the firewall.

“

Partisan games really ought to be a thing of the past.

Merz repeated on Monday that his party would not cooperate with the AfD. The Bild newspaper quoted him as saying the result had shaken the CDU to its foundations and that neither he nor the federal government could continue as before. AfD lead candidate Ulrich Siegmund said he hoped to become state leader if the party could build a stable legislative majority, adding that it would hold talks with various parliamentary groups.

“

This shakes our party to its very foundations. We cannot simply carry on as before, nor can I, nor can the federal government.

The populist left-wing BSW, which won 5% of the vote, is the only German party to have indicated that it is ready to work with the AfD. BSW leader Sahra Wagenknecht said even an attempt by mainstream parties to create another firewall coalition would insult voters.

“

Even the mere attempt to forge another firewall coalition by the other mainstream parties to keep the AfD out of power in Saxony-Anhalt would be an affront to the voters.