The AfD's support in Saxony-Anhalt has surpassed 40 percent in pre-election polls, putting the party clearly ahead of the other political groups. The AfD is polling at 40-43 percent, while the Christian Democratic Union, led by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, stands at 22-23 percent.
The Social Democratic Party, the junior partner in the government, is polling at 7-9 percent, while the Greens are at 5-6 percent. If the AfD secures an absolute majority in the state parliament, it could pave the way for the party to take power in a German state for the first time.
Migrants fear a possible AfD-led government
Around 200,000 foreign nationals live in Saxony-Anhalt. The Saxony-Anhalt State Office for the Protection of the Constitution classified the AfD as a “confirmed right-wing extremist” organization in 2023.
Hamdi Kayısı, a business owner in Magdeburg, said he did not want the AfD to take power but viewed such a possibility as a risk. Kayısı said that if the party came to power, a “poisoned atmosphere” would emerge for Turks, Afghans, Syrians and people from other countries.
Kayısı argued that the AfD was pursuing politics by advocating the deportation of foreign nationals and conducting propaganda against them. He said this atmosphere could lead to violence by neo-Nazi groups or force people to leave Germany through legal channels.
Kayısı said the concern was not limited to foreign nationals and that the German public should also be worried. Saying that they regarded Germany as their second homeland, Kayısı argued that democratic forces should not turn their backs on the country's problems and that the AfD's election platform could set German society back.
Migrant-owned businesses closed in protest
Kayısı said that migrant-owned businesses in Magdeburg closed on August 26 to send a message against racism and discrimination. He said some businesses received threats after the action.
Teacher Kavita Ghone-Schmiedecke also expressed concern over the AfD's support exceeding 40 percent. Ghone-Schmiedecke said she was worried about her children's education and her own professional life, and feared facing pressure because of her migrant background.
Ghone-Schmiedecke also expressed concern over the AfD's use of the term “Remigration,” which refers to sending migrants and people with migrant backgrounds back to their countries of origin. Saying that Germany was her homeland and that her family and friends lived there, Ghone-Schmiedecke said she had been in the state for 25 years. She said she had encountered comments such as “What are you doing here?” over the past six or seven years.
Voters expect a stable government
Florian Osmani, an Albanian-origin waiter, said he found it sad that the AfD was receiving such a high share of the vote. Osmani said the state had problems that needed to be solved and expressed discomfort with the use of racist approaches.
A voter who gave only the surname Bloch said they wanted a stable government to be formed after the election. Bloch said the AfD's high vote share could make that difficult. Saying they were close to the established parties, Bloch expressed concern about the AfD's goals of terminating the Interstate Treaty on Media Services and taking action against the churches.
Many people said they were concerned about the possibility of the AfD coming to power. However, they did not want to speak because they feared that publicly expressing their views under their own names could have negative consequences in the future.
