Thousands of people have protested across Germany against the far-right Alternative für Deutschland after its strongest-ever result in a state election. Demonstrators in Berlin warned that the party could make further gains in elections in Berlin and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania on 20 September.
Police estimated that 5,000 people joined a peaceful rally at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate, while organisers put attendance above 14,000. Rallies were also organised in cities including Potsdam, Münster, Göttingen, Dresden, Aachen, Bamberg, Darmstadt and Halberstadt.
Why the Saxony-Anhalt result alarmed opponents
The AfD’s result in the former communist eastern state was described as the best performance by a nativist party there since the Nazi period. The party fell just short of an absolute majority, but its candidate, Ulrich Siegmund, is seeking support from dissenting members of other parties to form a government.
Germany’s domestic intelligence agency has classified the AfD’s Saxony-Anhalt chapter as right-wing extremist since 2023, saying it threatens democratic norms. The party has called for mass deportations of asylum seekers and a rollback of state support for renewable energy and public broadcasting. For additional context, see “Why Germany’s Saxony-Anhalt election has minorities worried”.
What protesters said at the rallies
Posters at the Berlin demonstration included “Fascism is no alternative” and “History has its eyes on us”. Jens-Christian Wagner, director of the memorial at the former Nazi concentration camp Buchenwald, said the result should not be accepted in silence.
Max Schneller, a 17-year-old Linke member from Saxony-Anhalt, said activists would oppose attempts by an AfD government to target minorities. In Halle, the region’s second-largest city, leftist groups and civil society organisations have maintained a protest camp since election day. A related part of this story is covered in “Exit poll puts AfD ahead in key German state election”.
The contest in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Berlin
The AfD leads voter-intention polling in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania at about 35%. The state’s centre-left premier, Manuela Schwesig of the Social Democratic party, has made a summer comeback, with the SPD now above 30%.
Berlin’s contest is more evenly divided. The capital is governed by a coalition of the conservative Christian Democrats and the SPD. The CDU has a narrow lead at about 20%, followed by the Linke and AfD, while the SPD and Greens are polling in the mid-teens. The development of this issue can be followed in “Germany’s cabinet backs major intelligence reform package”.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz has said he will remain in office and pursue reforms aimed at reviving the economy and repairing the social welfare system. The SPD has indicated it may reverse some unpopular measures, a dispute analysts say could further strain the coalition.
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