AfD's Saxony-Anhalt win splits Europe as populists cheer, Poland warns

Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) won a landslide victory in Sunday's Saxony-Anhalt state election, securing 43.8% of the vote and triggering sharply divided reactions across Europe. The result, more than double AfD's 2016 performance, far outpaced Chancellor Friedrich Merz's Christian Democratic Union, which fell to 17.2%. AfD co-leader Alice Weidel declared a "clear mandate to govern," vowing border controls and deportations, while Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk condemned celebrants as "traitors." European populist leaders, including Italy's Matteo Salvini and Spain's Santiago Abascal, hailed the outcome as a breakthrough. The vote underscores growing continental divisions ahead of further German state elections this month, with mainstream parties alarmed by the surge.