MAGDEBURG, Germany — The far-right Alternative for Germany party won key regional elections by a landslide with at least 44 percent of the vote in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt on Sunday, exit polls by two public broadcasters found.
The result could bring to power the first far-right state government in Germany’s post-World War II history, but it was too early to tell whether the AfD had enough votes for an absolute majority that would allow it to govern a state alone for the first time.
“We have made history today,” said a jubilant Ulrich Siegmund, the 35-year-old lead candidate of the anti-immigration AfD in Saxony-Anhalt state.
The center-right CDU of Chancellor Friedrich Merz came a distant second, winning around 18.5 percent, according to exit polls by broadcasters ARD and ZDF. The center-left Social Democrats and environmental Greens both cleared the minimum threshold to enter parliament, the ARD poll showed.
Turnout was around 76%, well above levels typically seen in state elections.
