AfD pursues power in Saxony-Anhalt as election results shake CDU leadership

Government formation in Magdeburg

Following the state election in Saxony-Anhalt, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) has initiated efforts to form a state administration despite falling three seats short of an absolute majority in the Landtag. Lead candidate Ulrich Siegmund has shifted from earlier campaign demands for an outright majority toward exploring multiple governing arrangements. These options include coalition negotiations with the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW), attempts to recruit defectors from the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), or establishing a minority government capable of governing through state ordinances. Personnel preparations are already underway, with Der Spiegel reporting that former Berlin CDU finance senator Peter Kurth is being considered for a state secretary position overseeing economic or financial policy in an AfD-led administration.

Security concerns among state authorities

The prospect of an AfD-led government in Magdeburg has triggered high-level consultations among Germany's security apparatus. Because the state Verfassungsschutz classifies the regional AfD branch as confirmed right-wing extremist, an election outcome that yields control of the state interior ministry would place police files, informant identities, and classified intelligence directly under the party's oversight. State interior ministers convened via video conference on Tuesday afternoon to evaluate containment protocols, while state intelligence chiefs addressed the matter during a three-day summit in Cologne that concluded on Friday. Authorities have expressed concern regarding the protection of confidential informants and the risk of sensitive intelligence regarding Russian hybrid warfare leaking to Moscow.

Leadership tensions inside the CDU

The electoral outcome, in which nearly 60% of Saxony-Anhalt voters backed extreme parties, has deepened internal rifts within the CDU. On election night, Chancellor Friedrich Merz faced notable isolation at party headquarters in Berlin, attended among state premiers only by Schleswig-Holstein Minister-President Daniel Günther and Berlin candidate Stefan Evers. Leading CDU premiers, including Hendrik Wüst of North Rhine-Westphalia, Boris Rhein of Hesse, Michael Kretschmer of Saxony, and Gordon Schnieder of Rhineland-Palatinate, declined invitations to join Merz at headquarters. Former CDU leader Armin Laschet publicly criticised the absences during a television appearance on ZDF.

As a minister-president, if another federal chairman had been in such a difficult situation, I would have gone.

Federal policy fallout and Bundestag debate

Tension escalated further in Berlin during Wednesday's general debate in the Bundestag, where AfD co-leader Alice Weidel accused the Merz government of total failure. In response, Merz rejected AfD policy, describing the concept of remigration as a synonym for ethnic cleansing based on origin and skin colour. Within the coalition and regional branches, leaders are calling for urgent adjustments to federal policy, with CDU Health Minister Carsten Linnemann warning of severe long-term consequences for the party.

If we do not change course quickly, the Union faces an existential question.

In Hesse, Minister-President Boris Rhein urged the federal government to stage reforms in pensions, care, and health insurance sequentially rather than simultaneously, while regional SPD floor leader Tobias Eckert called for a review of federal social policy to avoid driving voters toward the political extremes. The Saxony-Anhalt Landtag convenes on 6 October 2026, when lawmakers may vote on the next minister-president.