Is a far-right party on the brink of taking power in a German state?

Magdeburg, a city of about 244,000 people, is preparing for an election with consequences far beyond Saxony-Anhalt. The state capital will be the focus this weekend as the Alternative for Germany, or AfD, seeks a victory that could put a far-right party in control of a German state for the first time since World War II.

The AfD is hoping to turn a substantial polling lead into power in Sunday’s election. The latest surveys put it at 41%, well ahead of the Christian Democratic Union, the party of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, at 23%.

A victory would represent a major breakthrough for the AfD, which was founded in 2013 largely as a protest movement against the European Union but has since moved sharply to the right. Supporters and opponents of right-wing populist movements across Europe are watching the contest closely.

Since 2023, Saxony-Anhalt’s Office for the Protection of the Constitution has classified the state AfD branch as a “confirmed far-right extremist” organization. The agency says the group’s core positions violate fundamental constitutional principles and are deeply shaped by the racist ideology of ethnopluralism. It also points to anti-Muslim, racist and antisemitic statements by party officials and elected representatives, saying the branch seeks an ethnically homogeneous population and advocates excluding people based on origin or religion.

The AfD’s lead candidate, 35-year-old Ulrich Siegmund, rejects that assessment. In an August interview, he said, “It monitors the opposition. It is being used as a political instrument.” He said an AfD-led government would consider abolishing or restructuring the state intelligence agency. Siegmund has presented himself as composed, charismatic and approachable, while Der Spiegel recently described him as “Germany’s most dangerous” candidate.

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It monitors the opposition. It is being used as a political instrument.