The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is close to governing a German state for the first time since World War II, following a significant victory in elections for the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt. Preliminary results indicate the party secured 43.8% of the vote, falling three seats short of an outright majority in the 83-seat state parliament.
AfD leaders are now calling for other political parties to enter into discussions to form a governing coalition. Beatrix von Storch, the party's deputy parliamentary leader, stated that "democracy demands" that parties work together and that opponents cannot "reject the vote of the people." She warned that a refusal to engage could lead to "severe chaos and maybe we have a new election."
Ulrich Siegmund, the AfD's leader in Saxony-Anhalt, declared on Monday that the party has a "clear mandate to govern." He noted that initial consultations with other parties began Sunday night and could take days or weeks. "We reach out to everybody first, we will have consultations and then we'll see whether [there are] individual parliamentary groups or MPs who would be willing to help us," Siegmund said.
Siegmund, 35, rejected the assessment by domestic intelligence that the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt is "right-wing extremist." The party is currently projected to win 39 seats, just shy of the 42 needed for a majority. The outgoing coalition partner, the conservative CDU, garnered 17.2% of the vote in the state.
Von Storch indicated that the AfD is also engaging with individuals within the CDU, suggesting some members are "very, very unhappy with their own party." Governing at the state level would grant the AfD significant powers, including control over policing and local education systems.