German far-right AfD's record win in Saxony-Anhalt shakes Merz's CDU

Germany's far-right AfD party won a landslide 43.8% of the vote in Saxony-Anhalt's state election on Sunday, more than doubling its 2021 result and delivering a major blow to Chancellor Friedrich Merz's CDU, which fell to 17.2%. The result marks the AfD's best performance in its 13-year history. The AfD won 39 of 83 state parliament seats, three short of an absolute majority, and faces a "firewall" as other parties refuse to form coalitions with it. However, the left-wing BSW party, with five seats, has suggested it might abstain in a final leadership vote, potentially enabling an AfD victory if one lawmaker defects. The CDU's collapse has triggered internal calls for Merz's resignation and intensified debate over whether to abandon its long-standing refusal to cooperate with the AfD. AfD co-chair Alice Weidel, who leads the party's 2029 federal election campaign, hailed the result as a "dream" and aims for 40% nationally.