Election live blog | The election evening to read

AfD supporters in a celebratory mood Photo: dpa/Sebastian Gollnow 10 p.m.: That's it for todayAfter an unpleasant election evening, the nd team signs off for today. Tomorrow there will be fresh news, analyzes and background information about the ballot in Saxony-Anhalt on our homepage and in our app. It's worth stopping by!

9.30 p.m.: The Left wins three constituencies directly. The AfD is unlikely to win all direct mandates. The Left wins in constituencies 11 (Magdeburg II), Halle II and Halle III “thanks to tactical vote splitting”. This is what Wahlrecht.de writes on its Bluesky account.

9.15 p.m.: Demonstrations after the AfDA's election success. In the evening there were protests against the AfD in several German cities: According to police information, around 2,500 people demonstrated in Frankfurt am Main to call for a ban on the AfD, the clear election winner, to be examined. Hundreds of people also took to the streets in Berlin that evening with similar demands. There was also a demonstration in Mainz about this. A larger rally against the AfD at the Brandenburg Gate has been announced for Monday evening.

8.50 p.m.: BSW in the state parliament according to ARDAccording to ARD, the BSW is represented in the Magdeburg state parliament with 5.1 percent. BSW chairwoman Amira Mohamed Ali explained shortly afterwards that her party viewed the election results as a “huge success”. The party will not elect either Sven Schulze or Ulrich Siegmund as Prime Minister. They are promoting a “third way”: an independent prime minister should be elected with the involvement of the entire state parliament. Mohamed Ali left it open whether the BSW would allow Ulrich Siegmund to be elected prime minister, for example by abstaining in the third round of voting. The firewall course of the other parties failed. You have to “take new paths”.

8.45 p.m.: Miteinander association calls the election result a “historical turning point.” The Miteinander association (network for democracy and cosmopolitanism in Saxony-Anhalt) calls the AfD’s election success a threat to people with a migration background. Managing director David Begrich explained in the evening: “The fact that more than 40 percent in Saxony-Anhalt are voting for a right-wing extremist party is not just a historical turning point. It is a stress test for democracy. A possible AfD government is a serious threat to people with a migration background, local activists and civil society. They all need encouragement and support now.« The association supports civil society, municipalities and schools through educational offerings, networking and targeted advice on democracy issues. A central focus is also on professional victim counseling and support for those affected by right-wing, racist and anti-Semitic violence.

8.25 p.m.: CDU young people demand the resignation of Sven SchulzeAccording to reports from “Stern”, the Junge Union Sachsen-Anhalt has called for Sven Schulze to resign as CDU chairman. The youth organization is also calling on the rest of the state leadership to resign. The party needs “a comprehensive new beginning.” CDU state parliament member Olaf Feuerborn said in a statement that there could be no “business as usual.” “Rather, the top candidate must draw personal consequences from this defeat,” it continues. The CDU member of the Bundestag Sepp Müller, who is considered Sven Schulze's competitor, said in the evening that the CDU had no government mandate. Before the elections, Müller vehemently rejected cooperation with the Left.

8:21 p.m.: Voter turnout at a record high According to projections by ARD and ZDF, turnout in the Saxony-Anhalt election has climbed to a record level. According to the figures, around 78 percent of those eligible to vote took part in the vote. The highest turnout in a state election in Saxony-Anhalt since reunification was in 1998 with 71.5 percent.

Graphic diagram No. 111188, portrait format 60 x 115 mm, "Election results of the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt over time" [Update me] Graphic: F. Bökelmann, Editor: J. John Photo: dpa-infografik 8:00 p.m.: New ARD extrapolation Small changes in the numbers: AfD 44.4 CDU 18.2 SPD 8.7 Greens 8.5Left 9.1BSW 5 FDP 2.3

7.55 p.m.: Central Council of Jews shocked by AfD election successThe Central Council of Jews expressed shock at the success of the AfD in the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt. “The outcome of the election is still open, but one thing is already certain: a party classified as firmly right-wing extremist is only just away from sole government in a German federal state,” Central Council President Josef Schuster told “Welt” about the first trends on election evening. He added: "I am personally horrified by this election result." It has been clear in recent months what goals the AfD is pursuing. “Whoever voted for her today – despite or because of these goals – bears responsibility for this result.” 

Graphic diagram No. 111208-14, portrait format 60x 75 mm, "Voter migration of the parties in the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt" [Update me] Graphic: F. Bökelmann, Editor: J. John Photo: dpa infographic 7.40 p.m.: Reichinnek: "Will not support AfD-Light politics" According to their parliamentary group leader, Heidi, the left are in the Bundestag Reichinnek, in Saxony-Anhalt, is available for talks about a coalition beyond the AfD. "We have always said very clearly that we are ready to talk to all democratic forces about how we can improve people's lives and defend this democracy," she said on ARD. At the same time, Reichinnek made it clear: "We will not support AfD light politics."

7:26 p.m.: CDU general secretary against talks with the LeftCDU general secretary Franziska Hoppermann rules out "serious" talks with the Left Party about a government alliance in Saxony-Anhalt in order to form a majority against the AfD. "How are we supposed to have serious discussions with a party that has a serious anti-Semitism problem, that wants a completely different social model than we do and that accuses us of pursuing fascist politics," said Hoppermann on ZDF. She added: »Our lines are clear. There will be no cooperation with left-wing extremists and right-wing extremists.«

7 p.m.: Second ARD projection The ARD has updated its numbers: AfD 44.4 CDU 18.4 SPD 8.4 Greens 8.7 Left 9.3 BSW 5 FDP ​​2.2

6.40 p.m.: Schwerdtner wants to keep AfD away from government According to party leader Ines Schwerdtner, the Left wants to keep the election winner AfD away from government power after the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt. “It is up to the CDU to say: who will take responsibility now,” said Schwerdtner on ZDF, with a view to a possible future government with the support of the Left. “It must be very clear that there are no changing majorities with the AfD,” the Left leader continued. The party should not be allowed to take control of the levers. Her party also wants to talk about content – ​​such as more daycare places.

6.30 p.m.: ARD with first projections The first projections from ARD are here: AfD 44.5 CDU 18.5 SPD 8.2 Greens 8.9 Left 9.4 BSW 5 FDP ​​2.1

Graphic diagram No. 111208-14, portrait format 60x 75 mm, "Voter migration of the parties in the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt" [Update me] Graphic: F. Bökelmann, Editor: J. John Photo: dpa infographic 6:03 p.m.: ARD with the forecastThe ARD forecast from 6 p.m.: AfD 44.5 (2021: 20.8)CDU 18.5 (37.1)SPD 8 (8.4)Greens 9 (5.9)Left 9.5 (11)BSW 5 (/)FDP 2 (6.4)

17.05: Demo with 200 young leftists Currently around 200 young leftists from the organization “Young Struggle” are marching through the city center of Magdeburg. They chant slogans “against fascism, war and capital” and describe the AfD as the “head of a bourgeois state.”

4.50 p.m.: Activists in Magdeburg with "We remain colorful" campaignOn the day of the state elections, activists from Greenpeace, the DGB Youth, Solidarity Magdeburg and other organizations for democracy, a diverse society, solidarity and humanity demonstrated on the cathedral square in Magdeburg. Together, those involved create a 35 by 50 meter lettering “We stay colorful” from thousands of colored sheets of paper.

4.30 p.m.: Very high voter turnout is evident. There is a very high voter turnout in the state elections. At 4 p.m. it was 65.3 percent, as the state returning officer in Magdeburg announced. This was significantly higher than in the last state election on June 6, 2021, when only 41 percent of those eligible to vote had cast their vote at 4 p.m.

4 p.m.: AfD without an absolute majority according to the last survey. In the last survey before the election, the AfD got 41 percent. This would mean that the right-wing party is still some way away from the absolute majority it is striving for in order to be able to govern alone in Saxony-Anhalt. Prime Minister Sven Schulze's CDU was at 23 percent in the survey published on Thursday by the Elections Research Group on behalf of ZDF. The Left followed in third place with 11.5 percent, the SPD had 8.5 percent, and the Greens had six percent. The BSW with four percent and the FDP with three percent would not get over the five percent hurdle.

Photo: Tim Lüddemann 3:20 p.m.: Review of yesterday Saturday On Saturday, thousands of people took to the streets in Magdeburg to demonstrate for democracy and cosmopolitanism. The organizers spoke of 15,000 to 20,000 participants who had come to a democracy festival on the cathedral square in Magdeburg during the day. And there was also a lot going on in Halle: thousands of Antifas were on the streets there to demonstrate against a possible AfD victory in the election. The protesters' message: "We're staying!" Our video editor Tim Lüddemann was there. His impressions can be found here.

2.40 p.m.: Every second person has already voted. In the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt, more than every second person had already cast their vote by early afternoon. At 2 p.m., voter turnout was 54.4 percent, as state returning officer Christa Dieckmann announced in Magdeburg. In the state election five years ago, voter turnout was 27.1 percent at the same time, and in 2016 it was 35.4 percent.

Photo: dpa/Matthias Bein 2:25 p.m.: 1.7 million people are eligible to vote. Almost 1.7 million citizens aged 18 and over are eligible to vote in the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt. The polling stations are open until 6 p.m. The counting then begins. The state returning officer expects a preliminary final result early on Monday morning.

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