The Alternative for Germany polled in the lead in Saxony-Anhalt after polls closed in the state election, a development that would represent the first time the far-right party has led a German state since the Second World War. Ulrich Siegmund, a candidate positioned to become state leader, said "everything is possible" in remarks attributed to the party's election campaign slogan.
The prospect of a far-right state government has prompted other German parties to maintain a cordon, known in German as a "Brandmauer," or firewall, to isolate the far-right party. German intelligence agencies have designated elements of the Alternative for Germany as right-wing extremist.
The party has shifted its messaging in recent years, replacing slogans like "Enough is Enough" with what it describes as a more positive platform. Der Spiegel magazine labeled the party's leader Germany's "most dangerous man," describing him as a "quote-friendly, approachable but dangerous seducer" whose public persona masks a more radical programme. Siegmund dismissed such characterizations as establishment propaganda.
