In Saxony-Anhalt, Germany's poorest state, a Sunday election may produce something the country has not seen since the fall of the Third Reich: a far-right government holding democratic office. The AfD's lead candidate, Ulrich Siegmund — young, polished, and politically calculating — has positioned himself as a voice of restoration in a region that feels left behind, while critics see in his rise not a local story but a national rehearsal. History has long taught that the margins of a democracy are where its center is first tested, and what happens in this small eastern state may echo far beyon
AfD's Siegmund Eyes Saxony-Anhalt as Blueprint for Far-Right Expansion
Vulnerable populations including minorities, refugees, and LGBTQ+ individuals would face increased discrimination and potential forced deportations under proposed AfD policies.
Testing ground for the whole country
Mark
So Siegmund is genuinely popular, or is this manufactured enthusiasm?
Mimi
The crowds are real. He's charismatic, energetic, and he's tapping into genuine frustration in a state that has been economically left behind. But the campaign itself is also extremely well-organized—precision logistics, consistent messaging. It's both authentic appeal and professional execution.
Luke
But we should be clear: the polls show him leading, but do they show him winning an absolute majority? The source says that's "the only open question." That matters, because without it, he can't be premier—the other parties have said they won't coalition with the AfD.
Mark
What about the policies? Are they actually radical, or is that framing?
Mimi
They're stated plainly in the hundred-day plan: mass deportations of people whose status is tolerated for humanitarian reasons, defunding pro-democracy NGOs, forcing refugees to work. These aren't coded language—they're explicit.
Luke
Though the source also notes there are "significant legal doubts" about whether a state government can actually implement all of this. That's important. We don't know yet whether these are campaign promises or executable policy.
Mark
And the neo-Nazi connections—how serious is that?
Mimi
Four former members of a banned neo-Nazi organization work in the AfD's parliamentary group. Siegmund has been photographed arm-in-arm with men wearing neo-Nazi symbols. That's not allegation; that's documented.
Luke
Right, but we should separate what we know from what we're inferring. We know he's appeared with these people. We know they have these affiliations. What we don't know is whether Siegmund himself holds those beliefs or is simply willing to tolerate them in his coalition.
Mark
Does any of this matter to voters?
Mimi
Apparently not enough to shift the polls. Siegmund remains the frontrunner. The campaign is working.
Luke
Which raises the real question: why? Is it economic desperation? Is it that voters don't know about these connections? Is it that they know and don't care? The source doesn't quite answer that.
Il Polso
- Saxony-Anhalt's Sunday vote could install the first far-right government in Germany since 1945, a threshold that has alarmed democratic institutions across the political spectrum.
- Siegmund, a 35-year-old former perfume salesman turned magnetic campaigner, has drawn international press from the BBC to The Economist — everyone sensing that something consequential is unfolding.
- The AfD's hundred-day plan calls for mass deportations, defunding of pro-democracy NGOs, and a rollback of LGBTQ+ protections, policies that legal experts say may exceed what a state government can lawfully enact.
- Beneath Siegmund's polished image lie troubling associations: neo-Nazi symbols observed at his appearances, four former members of a banned Hitler-admiring youth group employed by his parliamentary group, and a nepotism controversy involving his own father.
- Civil society leaders, churches, and trade unions warn that an AfD victory would turn Saxony-Anhalt into a testing ground for dismantling democratic norms nationwide — with minorities, refugees, and LGBTQ+ individuals bearing the sharpest costs.
In Saxony-Anhalt, Germany's poorest state, a Sunday election may produce something the country has not seen since the fall of the Third Reich: a far-right government holding democratic office. The AfD's lead candidate, Ulrich Siegmund — young, polished, and politically calculating — has positioned himself as a voice of restoration in a region that feels left behind, while critics see in his rise not a local story but a national rehearsal. History has long taught that the margins of a democracy are where its center is first tested, and what happens in this small eastern state may echo far beyond its borders.
Saxony-Anhalt is small — two million people, the poorest and least healthy of Germany's sixteen states — but this Sunday's election carries weight far beyond its borders. The AfD is positioned to win, which would mark the first far-right government to hold power in Germany since 1945.
The man at the center of this moment is Ulrich Siegmund, thirty-five years old, born in the state itself, a former CDU member turned AfD lead candidate who once sold perfume for a living. On the campaign trail he is magnetic — energetic, quick-witted, at ease in town squares with crowds of supporters. International journalists have arrived in force to understand him: crews from Canada, Denmark, Switzerland, the BBC, and The Economist, among dozens of German outlets. Siegmund has told interviewers that his approval ratings, even among young voters, have never been higher.
The AfD's campaign is running with strategic precision. David Begrich, who directs Miteinander, a Magdeburg-based organization countering right-wing extremism, described the party's events as logistically flawless — "high-gloss marketing of their own policies." Those policies point backward: mass deportations of tolerated foreign nationals who have built lives in Germany, cuts to pro-democracy funding, forced labor for refugees, and a rejection of the social pluralism that has defined postwar German identity. Legal experts question whether a state government even holds the authority to enact much of what Siegmund is promising.
Yet Siegmund's clean image has visible cracks. He placed his own father in an AfD office — not illegal, but criticized even within the party. More alarming, his parliamentary group employs four former members of a neo-Nazi organization banned for openly admiring Hitler, and DW observed Siegmund appearing arm-in-arm with men bearing neo-Nazi tattoos, including the Black Sun. He has shown no discomfort with these associations.
Begrich and others fear the consequences of an AfD victory will not stay contained. "There are clear indications that if the AfD were to enter government, it would turn Saxony-Anhalt into a testing ground for the whole country," he said. For minorities, refugees, and LGBTQ+ individuals, the social climate would shift toward what Begrich called "authoritarian regimentation" — a condition, he said, that is as suffocating as the absence of air. Many observers see Saxony-Anhalt not as a destination but as a launchpad for a party with national ambitions.
Saxony-Anhalt is small—two million people, the poorest and least healthy of Germany's sixteen states—but this Sunday's election could reshape the country's political future. The Alternative for Germany, the AfD, is positioned to win, and if it does, it will mark the first far-right government to take power in Germany since 1945.
The face of this potential shift is Ulrich Siegmund, thirty-five years old, the AfD's lead candidate. He was born in Havelberg, a town in the state itself, and spent his twenties in the center-right Christian Democratic Union before switching to the AfD five years later. He worked as a perfume salesman. On the campaign trail, he is magnetic—slim, handsome, energetic, moving through town squares to crowds of supporters, shaking hands, telling jokes. International journalists have descended on Saxony-Anhalt to watch him: crews from Canada, Denmark, Switzerland, the BBC, The Economist, and dozens of German outlets. Everyone wants to understand who he is and why he matters. Siegmund speaks quickly and with ease. When DW asked him about his popularity, he said simply that approval ratings, even among young voters, had never been higher. "It's simply enormous," he told them.
The AfD's campaign machinery is running with precision. David Begrich, who directs Miteinander, an organization in the state capital of Magdeburg dedicated to countering right-wing extremism, observed that the party's events are logistically flawless and strategically disciplined. "It is high-gloss marketing of their own policies," he said. Those policies, as Siegmund lays them out in speeches, point backward—to a Germany before immigration was normalized, before renewable energy replaced nuclear power, before LGBTQ+ rights were enshrined. His slogan is politics "from the people, for the people." The AfD's hundred-day action plan includes mass deportations of foreign nationals whose status is tolerated on humanitarian grounds, many of whom have built lives and found work in Germany. It calls for cutting funding to pro-democracy organizations, forcing refugees into labor, and prioritizing German nationalism over social pluralism. Legal experts question whether a state government has the authority to enact many of these measures.
But Siegmund's clean public image has cracks. He secured a position for his own father in an AfD office—not illegal, but a move that drew criticism even within his own party, part of a broader pattern of nepotism that has shadowed the AfD at state and federal levels. More troubling is the company he keeps. According to Die Welt, the AfD's parliamentary group in Saxony-Anhalt employs four former members of the Heimattreue Deutsche Jugend, a neo-Nazi organization that was banned for openly admiring Hitler and adhering to Nazi racial ideology. DW observed Siegmund appearing arm-in-arm with men wearing neo-Nazi symbols and tattoos, including the Black Sun, a recognized emblem in neo-Nazi circles. Siegmund himself appears unbothered by these associations.
If the AfD wins on September 6, Begrich and others fear the consequences will ripple far beyond the state. "There are clear indications that if the AfD were to enter government, it would turn Saxony-Anhalt into a testing ground for the whole country," Begrich said. The question becomes: how far can a government push against both written and unwritten democratic norms? Churches, trade unions, civil society groups, and political parties across the spectrum have warned against an AfD victory. Begrich is among them. "Naturally, things will become difficult, above all, for those in society who either belong to minorities or do not fit into the AfD's ideological worldview," he said. "The social climate would inevitably shift to an authoritarian regimentation—and that poses a problem for people who need liberal openness in society as they need air to breathe." Many observers see Saxony-Anhalt not as an endpoint but as a launchpad—the first step toward a party that aims to govern the entire country.
Citazioni salienti
There are clear indications that if the AfD were to enter government, it would turn Saxony-Anhalt into a testing ground for the whole country.— David Begrich, Miteinander
The social climate would inevitably shift to an authoritarian regimentation—and that poses a problem for people who need liberal openness in society as they need air to breathe.— David Begrich, Miteinander
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Politics & Governance