State election: Polling stations open in Saxony-Anhalt as the vote begins

The decision in Saxony-Anhalt is now in voters’ hands. Polling stations opened at 8 a.m. for the state election and will remain open until 6 p.m., when counting begins. The state election commissioner expects a preliminary final result early Monday morning.

Nearly 1.7 million residents aged 18 and over are eligible to vote. Ballot papers contain two votes: the first selects a constituency candidate, while the second goes to a party. The state parliament will later elect the minister-president.

The AfD entered election day far ahead of the CDU in every opinion poll. Its 35-year-old lead candidate, Ulrich Siegmund, is campaigning for a government run by the party alone. The latest figures did not indicate that it would reach that goal.

In the final poll before the vote, conducted by Forschungsgruppe Wahlen for ZDF, the AfD stood at 41 percent. The CDU of incumbent Premier Sven Schulze had 23 percent, followed by the Left at 11.5 percent, the Social Democrats at 8.5 percent and the Greens at 6 percent. The BSW, at 4 percent, and the FDP, at 3 percent, were below the 5 percent threshold and would miss out on parliament under those figures.

Schulze wants to remain premier. He would then face the question of potential coalition partners. Saxony-Anhalt is currently governed by an alliance of the CDU, SPD and FDP.