Overview
- Multiple outlets on Tuesday quoted Maaßen telling Die Zeit he would take the interior job if the AfD enters government in Saxony-Anhalt.
- The state AfD offered no official confirmation, though several party figures told Die Zeit his name is under internal discussion, and Maaßen declined to say if he had been formally asked.
- He said he has spoken with AfD lead candidate Ulrich Siegmund and warned that weak governing would hurt the federal party.
- Polling cited in the coverage puts the AfD near 41 percent ahead of the September 6 state election, which is close to an absolute majority in the state parliament.
- The interior minister runs state policing and domestic security, and Maaßen once led Germany’s domestic intelligence service, which now classifies him in the area of right‑wing extremism.