Germany – AfD scores historic victory, elects a regional parliament speaker for the first time

MAGDEBURG, October 6 /ATSH-DPA/ – Alternative for Germany (AfD) lawmaker Tobias Rausch was elected today as speaker of the parliament of the eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt, marking a historic moment for the far-right party.

The AfD candidate, Rausch, won a majority of votes in the newly formed parliament in Magdeburg, a month after the party convincingly won the elections in this state.

With this election, Rausch becomes the highest elected official ever from the AfD in the party’s 13 years of existence.

The result is also a significant success for Ulrich Siegmund, the AfD’s lead candidate in Saxony-Anhalt, who aims to become the first state premier in Germany from the AfD’s ranks.

The AfD’s national co-leader, Alice Weidel, called the election a “great success” in a post on X and congratulated Rausch.

In the September elections, the AfD took almost 44% of the vote but did not win an absolute majority in the Saxony-Anhalt parliament, which has 83 seats. The AfD won 39 seats.

Four parties that have officially declared they will not cooperate with the AfD – Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s conservative CDU, The Left, the Greens and the Social Democrats – also hold 39 seats together.

Meanwhile, the small BSW party, which holds pro-Russia positions, won five seats and became a decisive force in parliament. This means its votes could determine who reaches a majority.

The BSW opposes the so-called political “firewall”, the other parties’ principle of not cooperating with the AfD.

The BSW promised to support Rausch’s election as parliament speaker. However, it is still unknown whether BSW lawmakers will also support Siegmund for the post of state premier.

The AfD and the BSW together have 44 seats, while 42 are needed for a majority.

Nevertheless, Rausch received 48 votes. This shows that at least four lawmakers from other parties voted in his favour. Five other lawmakers abstained.

If Siegmund achieves a similar result when he runs for premier in December, the AfD could form a regional government in a German state for the first time.

Before the historic vote, hundreds of people protested outside the parliament.