Far-right win leaves Germany’s Merz shaken

Chancellor Friedrich Merz yesterday ruled out working with the Alternative for Germany after the far-right party surged into first place in state elections in Saxony-Anhalt but conceded the result had shaken his party “to its very foundations”.

The AfD is appealing to lawmakers from Merz’s conservatives to support its bid to rule the eastern state, in what would be the first time a far-right party takes power at state level in postwar Germany.

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The anti-immigrant, pro-Russia AfD won nearly 44 percent of the vote, an outcome that underlined the deep unpopularity of Merz’s ruling coalition and also triggered alarm among Germany’s neighbours, France and Poland.  However, the party fell short of an absolute majority in the state legislature, winning 39 of the 83 seats.