AfD wins big in Saxony-Anhalt but falls short of majority

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) won a resounding victory in Sunday's regional election in Saxony-Anhalt, securing over 44% of the vote but falling short of an absolute majority needed to form Germany's first far-right state government since World War II. The result was a disastrous blow to Chancellor Friedrich Merz's Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which slumped to about 18%, losing half its support after leading the state for 24 years. AfD's candidate for governor, Ulrich Siegmund, declared "we have written history" and claimed a clear mandate to govern, while the party's national co-leader Alice Weidel called the result "sensational." AfD, classified as a proven right-wing extremist group by domestic intelligence, campaigned on "remigration" deportations and lifting Russia sanctions. Mainstream parties reaffirmed their "firewall" refusal to cooperate with AfD, leaving the state's political future uncertain.