AfD wins nearly 44% in Saxony-Anhalt and will lead assembly
Big political shift in Germany: the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) just scored nearly 44% of the vote in Saxony-Anhalt, overtaking Merz's CDU.
This means AfD is about to lead a state assembly, a first since World War II.
The Magdeburg assembly meets October 6, 2026, and AfD's Tobias Rausch is expected to become speaker.
AfD needs partners despite extremist classification
AfD has 39 out of 83 seats, so it will need partners to actually govern.
It has some support from BSW (which agrees with it on Russia and immigration), but CDU leadership says there will be no defectors from his party.
Meanwhile, AfD leader Ulrich Siegmund is eyeing the top job in December.
All this puts extra heat on Merz's CDU nationally, especially as activists plan protests against working with AfD, which German domestic intelligence still classifies as a confirmed extremist organization.