AI Generated Image
Anti-AfD protests sweep Germany as far right closes in on two more states
The Guardian • • general
Key Points:
- Thousands of Germans protested peacefully against the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) following the party’s historic victory in the Saxony-Anhalt state election, warning of its threat ahead of two more regional polls in September.
- The AfD secured nearly 44% of the vote in Saxony-Anhalt, its best-ever state result and the strongest for a nativist party since the Nazi era, raising concerns about the far right potentially taking power for the first time since World War II.
- Demonstrators and activists across multiple cities, including Berlin and Potsdam, condemned the AfD’s anti-immigrant and pro-Russian stances, urging voters to oppose the party and defend democratic values.
- The AfD is close to forming a government in Saxony-Anhalt but lacks a few votes, while polls show it leading in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and competing strongly in Berlin amid a fragmented political landscape.
- Germany’s ruling coalition faces internal tensions as Chancellor Friedrich Merz of the CDU pushes for reforms to counter the AfD’s rise, while the SPD signals willingness to soften unpopular measures, potentially destabilizing the government.
