Weidel after AfD’s historic victory: “The CDU will never win another election”
The Alternative for Germany co-leader interprets the 44% secured in Saxony-Anhalt as a “clear mandate to govern”
Alternative for Germany’s (AfD) historic victory in Saxony-Anhalt produced one of the election night’s most forceful statements.
Party co-leader Alice Weidel predicted that the CDU would never win another election if it maintained its cordon sanitaire against AfD and continued seeking majorities with left-wing parties.
“I do not expect the CDU to win another election,” Weidel said after the first projections were released, blaming the Christian Democrats for AfD’s growth. She argued that the CDU had failed to deliver on its political promises and that a significant proportion of its voters had moved towards Alternative for Germany.
La copresidenta de AfD, Alice Weidel, tras el excelente resultado electoral de su partido en Sajonia-Anhalt: “La CDU nunca más ganará unas elecciones”. pic.twitter.com/hoxiMRRbNZ
— Wall Street Wolverine (@wallstwolverine) September 6, 2026
Sunday’s projections put AfD at around 44.4% of the vote, compared with 18.4%–18.5% for the CDU. The party has more than doubled the 20.8% it secured in 2021, achieving the best result in its history in a regional election.
Weidel says voters have given AfD a mandate to govern
The AfD co-leader interpreted the result as a “clear mandate to govern” Saxony-Anhalt. Projections award the party 39 of the regional parliament’s 83 seats, with 42 required for an absolute majority.
The BSW’s final result remains particularly important. The party is hovering around the 5% electoral threshold, and whether it enters parliament could significantly alter the final distribution of seats.
Given the possibility that AfD may not secure the 42 seats required to govern alone, Weidel has already opened the door to negotiations with other parties, including the CDU.
“Our hand is extended,” she said, advocating talks to form a government.
AfD’s regional candidate, Ulrich Siegmund, also announced that the party would offer dialogue to political forces willing to support a change of direction.
CDU maintains its rejection of any agreement
The Christian Democrats’ response, however, was immediate. CDU Secretary-General Franziska Hoppermann ruled out cooperation with AfD and stated that the party’s new parliamentary group in Magdeburg would not work together with AfD.
This refusal leaves a particularly complicated parliamentary situation unresolved. If AfD fails to secure an absolute majority and the other parties maintain the cordon sanitaire, forming an alternative majority would require an agreement between political forces with significant ideological differences.
