An election poster of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party reading "Migration needs borders" is fixed in front of the headquarters of Germany's conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party in Berlin on Sept. 7, 2026. (AFP)
Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has set its sights on federal power after its record state election victory, a result that has deepened unease among the country’s immigrant communities, including its large Turkish population.
At a press conference in Berlin on Sept. 7, AfD co-leaders Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla appeared alongside lead candidate Ulrich Siegmund and presented the result as a springboard for the 2029 federal election.
“We will be the strongest force across Germany at the next federal election,” Weidel said.
She said an AfD-led federal government would seek to stop irregular migration and deport people convicted of crimes and rejected asylum seekers.
According to provisional official results, the AfD won 43.8 percent of the vote in Saxony-Anhalt on Sept. 6, more than doubling its 20.8 percent share in 2021.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) fell to 17.2 percent from 37.1 percent.
The AfD secured 39 of the 83 seats in the state parliament, three short of an outright majority.
The result has left the state facing difficult coalition arithmetic.
Germany’s mainstream parties have long ruled out cooperation with the AfD under the political “firewall” intended to keep the far right out of government.
Forming a majority without the AfD would require all five other parties represented in parliament to work together.
Siegmund said the AfD would speak with every parliamentary group and individual lawmaker but would seek a stable majority rather than lead a minority administration.
The party’s state branch has been classified as a proven right-wing extremist group by local domestic intelligence.
Its campaign included stricter deportation policies and a proposed task force to remove migrants who do not work or integrate.
Siegmund sought to allay concerns after the vote, saying no one should be afraid and that an AfD-led government would operate under the rule of law.
The result has nevertheless intensified concern among Germany’s Turkish community.
International relations expert Canan Tercan told daily Hürriyet that the outcome could push other parties toward tougher positions on migration and security.
“For Turks, the AfD’s policies should not be assessed only through the question of ‘who will be deported,’ but also through the future legal and social position of migrants in Germany,” she said.
Tercan noted that the party’s official documents did not call for German citizens to be deported solely because of their immigrant roots.
However, she said tougher positions on immigration, naturalization and dual citizenship, along with policies affecting Muslims, could have broader consequences for the Turkish community.
Cihan Günyel, a Turkish political scientist and foreign policy expert, said the AfD’s attempts to attract Turkish and other immigrant-origin voters reflected electoral pragmatism.
“When we look at its ideological structure, it is not inclusive and is anti-immigration,” he said.
Merz, meanwhile, ruled out resigning after acknowledging that the CDU had suffered its worst defeat in the state in decades.
“Giving up is not an option for me,” he said.
State elections in Berlin and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania on Sept. 20 will provide the next test of whether the AfD can extend its gains.
