The AfD's lead candidate in Saxony-Anhalt, Ulrich Siegmund, has publicly thanked Elon Musk for his support following the party's historic state election victory, while a French minister described the result as a "serious moment" for Europe.
AfD's historic win and Musk's backing
On Sunday night, exit polls projected the AfD had secured 44.4% of the vote in Saxony-Anhalt, more than doubling its previous support and decisively ahead of the Christian Democrats (CDU) of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who trailed with around 18.4%. The far-left Die Linke was third with 9.3%, while the Social Democrats and Greens polled at 8.4% and 8.7% respectively.
Shortly after the projections, AfD co-founder Alice Weidel posted on X, and Musk responded with "Well done!" in German. Siegmund then wrote on X: "Thank you for your support and for your clear and highly important perspective on the political developments of our time," adding, "I would very much welcome the opportunity for strong and constructive cooperation."
International reactions and coalition uncertainty
US President Donald Trump posted a screenshot of the election projection on his Truth Social site without comment, and Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev shared it, praising a "historic win for the pragmatic AfD." The AfD is pro-Kremlin, advocating an end to support for Ukraine and the removal of refugee status for Ukrainians.
France's Europe minister, Benjamin Haddad, called the win "a serious moment in Europe," warning that "nationalism and xenophobia will never be a solution." He added, "We must listen with humility to the anger, the concerns, the fears, and respond to them. We cannot forget our history." Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said, "In Poland, only idiots or traitors can rejoice at the triumph of the AfD in Germany."
Despite the victory, it remains unclear how the AfD will form a government. The party has ruled out entering a coalition, and mainstream parties have refused any cooperation, leaving the possibility of a minority administration or new elections.
Economic and security concerns
The German Economic Institute warned of "far-reaching consequences" for the German economy, calling the AfD's immigration policy "calamitous" for Saxony-Anhalt, which has an ageing, dwindling population and depends heavily on foreign workers.
Critics have also raised concerns that an AfD-run state could leak sensitive information to Russia due to the party's Kremlin-friendly stance. The AfD has dismissed these claims and said it would seek to reform the domestic intelligence service, calling it biased.
