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Germany's far-right hails historic election victory in the east

2024-09-02 07:43:00, Kosova & Bota CNA
Germany's far-right hails historic election victory in the east
AfD's main candidate in Thuringia, Björn Höcke

Germany's anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) is celebrating a historic success, with a major victory for the far-right party in the eastern state of Thuringia.

The AfD won almost a third of the vote, nine points ahead of the conservative CDU and well ahead of Germany's three governing parties.

The result gives the far right its first victory in state parliament elections since World War II, although it has little hope of forming a government in Thuringia.

The AfD came second ahead of Sunday's other major state election in the more populous neighboring state of Saxony. The results there gave the CDU 31.9% of the vote, just over a point ahead of the AfD, again well ahead of the three parties running the national government, the Social Democrats, the Greens and the liberal FDP.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the results were "bittersweet" and called on the other main parties to form state governments without the far right.

"The AfD is damaging Germany. It is weakening the economy, dividing society and destroying the reputation of our country," he said in a statement to Reuters.

The AfD's leading candidate in Thuringia, Björn Höcke, who is a highly controversial figure in Germany, hailed a "historic victory" and spoke of it with great pride. He failed to win a direct seat in the state parliament, but secured a seat because he was at the top of his party's list. Mr Höcke's party has been branded right-wing extremist and he has been fined for using a Nazi slogan, although the former history teacher denies it.

One of Germany's best-known Holocaust survivors, Charlotte Knobloch, noted that the election was held 85 years after the outbreak of World War II. The result had left the country at risk of becoming "more unstable, colder and poorer, less safe and less worth living", she said.

With federal elections just a year away, the AfD is second in national polls. Co-leader Alice Weidel said the result was a "requiem" for Germany's three parties and it was clear voters in both eastern states wanted her party in government./ CNA





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