And not just Germany. In Berlin, Brussels and capitals across Europe and the Western world, the meteoric rise and first-place finish of the AfD, a party labeled “extremist” by German intelligence, sent tremors through establishment political circles.

BERLIN, Sept 6 — German voters headed to the polls today for a crucial regional election in the ex-communist east where the far-right, anti-immigration and Moscow-friendly AfD…

An anti-immigrant, pro-Russian party is on the threshold of holding significant power for the first time.