Overview
- Voters cast ballots in Saxony-Anhalt on Sunday in a closely watched election where polls put the far-right Alternative for Germany at about 40–41 percent and give it a realistic chance of an outright majority.
- Germany’s domestic intelligence service has classified parts of the AfD as right-wing extremist, prompting officials to worry an AfD-led state government could influence local intelligence work and gain access to classified files.
- Federal ministers are publicly weighing steps to limit AfD access to sensitive material and have drawn contingency plans that reference Article 37 of the constitution as a way to compel state compliance with federal law.
- The AfD’s platform calls for abolishing the right to asylum, mass deportations and confiscating asylum seekers’ assets, policies that could change policing priorities and affect migrants’ daily lives in the state.
- Longstanding economic and demographic grievances in eastern Germany help explain the party’s strength and make Saxony-Anhalt a potential springboard for the AfD’s national ambitions ahead of the 2029 federal vote.