Joerg Urban, leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in the state of Saxony, speaks to voters at an AfD campaign rally prior to state elections in Saxony-Anhalt on Aug. 24, 2026 in Naumburg, Germany. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)
Germany is preparing for the possibility that the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) could lead a state government for the first time, as the party holds a wide polling lead ahead of the Sept. 6 election in Saxony-Anhalt.
About 1.7 million people are eligible to vote in the eastern state.
Recent polls put the AfD at between 41 and 43 percent, well ahead of the governing Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which stands at between 22 and 24 percent.
With several smaller parties polling close to Germany’s 5-percent electoral threshold, that level of support could give the AfD an outright majority of seats, although the outcome remains uncertain.
If the party secures enough seats to govern alone, its lead candidate Ulrich Siegmund could become Germany’s first AfD state premier since the party was founded in 2013.
The prospect has prompted federal and state officials to consider how an AfD-led administration should be handled in sensitive areas, particularly intelligence sharing.
The AfD’s Saxony-Anhalt branch has been classified by the state’s domestic intelligence service as a “confirmed right-wing extremist” organization.
The party rejects the designation and is challenging it in court.
Thuringia Interior Minister Georg Maier has called for an AfD-led administration to be denied access to intelligence concerning right-wing extremist groups and counterespionage.
Maier said a state could not be excluded entirely from Germany’s joint intelligence network but argued that internal barriers could be introduced to restrict access to certain information.
He cited security concerns over the AfD’s contacts with Russia.
An AfD state premier would also participate in meetings of Germany’s 16 state leaders and their talks with Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Saxony-Anhalt is scheduled to assume the rotating chair of the Conference of Minister-Presidents in October, although it remains unclear whether a new state government will be formed by then.
The election will also test Germany’s political “firewall,” under which other parties rule out coalitions or structured cooperation with the AfD. With no prospective coalition partner, the party’s route to government largely depends on winning enough seats to govern alone.
AfD co-leader Alice Weidel criticized the firewall during an interview with public broadcaster ZDF on Aug. 23, calling it “the most undemocratic thing there is.”
Weidel said the AfD would enter government first at the state level and later nationally.
She also backed closing Germany’s borders and leaving the Schengen Area, defended her party’s position favoring an exit from the euro and rejected further measures targeting climate change.
The AfD’s Saxony-Anhalt campaign calls for a “180-degree turn” in migration policy, including tighter deportation rules and greater use of detention pending removal.
