This Sunday, around 1.7 million people in the federal state of Saxony-Anhalt are invited to participate in the elections. In all polls, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, with its leading candidate Ulrich Sigmund, is significantly ahead of the CDU, led by the state’s Prime Minister Sven Schulze, garnering over 40% of the votes. Thus, for the first time in Germany, conditions are arising where a regional party, which the state office for the protection of the constitution considers to be demonstrably far-right extremist, will take responsibility for forming the government. The office for the protection of the constitution in Saxony-Anhalt is part of the Ministry of the Interior of the state, which is headed by the CDU. The atmosphere is tense. The intrigue remains: according to the ZDF political barometer, shortly before the elections to the state parliament, 26% of surveyed voters are still undecided. AfD's leading candidate Ulrich Sigmund stated that he is ready to lead the government only on the condition of an absolute majority for his party. Whether the AfD can achieve such an absolute majority of seats in the state parliament in Magdeburg depends on the results of smaller parties. The more parties that overcome the five-percent threshold and enter the Magdeburg state parliament, the lower the AfD's chances of an absolute majority of parliamentary mandates. Therefore, various groups have urged voters to vote tactically. The AfD, CDU, Left Party, SPD, FDP, and the BSW movement are critical of such recommendations. Only the Green Party supports the campaign. Prime Minister of Saxony-Anhalt Sven Schulze from the CDU is fighting to retain his position. The CDU rejects a coalition with the AfD. The party of Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz could cooperate with all other forces. However, in the decision of the CDU party congress, the so-called incompatibility clause was established, also opposing "coalitions and similar forms of cooperation" with the Left Party.
