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In Germany, an election in a small eastern region is sending shockwaves through the country and into Europe more broadly. The far-right AfD won big, and the party of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, the conservative Christian Democrats, received a record low number of votes, and that is putting more pressure on Merz. Esme Nicholson reports.
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ULRICH SIEGMUND: (Speaking German).
ESME NICHOLSON, BYLINE: That's the man who has unnerved the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz. Half Merz's age, 35-year-old Ulrich Siegmund and his party, the Alternative for Germany, have won 43% of the vote in what should have been a quiet election in the small state of Saxony-Anhalt.
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SIEGMUND: (Speaking German).
NICHOLSON: Speaking to public broadcaster ARD, Siegmund said, "The result sends a very clear signal to Berlin," adding, "This is the end of the line. People do not want to go on like this." Siegmund is now hoping to become the country's first far-right state governor since the Nazis were in power. While the AfD, which ran on an anti-immigration ticket, is three seats shy of the majority needed to govern, its resounding success has turned heads far beyond Berlin. President Donald Trump posted the results on Truth Social, which the Kremlin then reposted, calling it an historic win. But not all reactions were positive.
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ROLAND LESCURE: (Speaking French).
NICHOLSON: Speaking to RTL, France's Finance Minister Roland Lescure, said, the AfD's success sends a very, very worrying signal. The prime minister of Germany's other immediate neighbor, Poland's Donald Tusk, wrote on X that in Poland, only idiots or traitors can rejoice in the triumph of the AfD in Germany. But in Berlin, a visibly deflated Friedrich Merz conceded his center-right Christian Democrat party's most severe election defeat in years or decades.
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CHANCELLOR FRIEDRICH MERZ: (Speaking German)
NICHOLSON: "It's part of democracy that party majorities shift," Merz admitted reluctantly, "but the values of our constitution are not up for debate," he warned, adding that, "In our democracy, power is granted not seized, and minorities are not the enemy of the majority.".
Merz's comments come amid fears about the far-right AfD's plans for Saxony-Anhalt. Siegmund, a former salesman, has a knack for packaging his party's policies in positive slogans. But the AfD's regional platform is the party's most radical, and it's considered anticonstitutional because of its remigration policy, which promises mass deportations and calls to segregate refugees and disabled children in schools. Markus Ziener, visiting fellow at the German Marshall Fund, says this is what makes accepting the will of the electorate so tricky.
MARKUS ZIENER: Do we want to bring a party into power that is outright anticonstitutional? Do we have the obligation to prevent a party like this to gain power in our country?
NICHOLSON: He adds that this is where the AfD's understanding of democracy diverges. Speaking to public broadcaster ZDF, AfD federal leader and possible future chancellor candidate Alice Weidel accused the other parties of being undemocratic for refusing to work with her party.
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ALICE WEIDEL: (Speaking German).
NICHOLSON: "We are democrats." Weidel insisted. "We talk to everyone. We do not erect firewalls." Weidel then declared that the CDU would never win another election. But Siegmund is still short of three seats and is vying for the support of anyone willing to, quote, step out of their comfort zone to make him governor. Anyone who does will be keenly aware of the historical steps they're taking. For NPR News, I'm Esme Nicholson in Berlin. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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