AfD becomes first far-right party to win German state election since 1945 [Video]

The Alternative for Germany (AfD) has become the first far-right party to win a state election since the Nazi era, dealing a crushing blow to Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government with only a year to go before the next federal election.

After voting closed on Sunday, the AfD was projected to become the strongest party in the eastern state of Thuringia, with 32.8 per cent of the vote, and to come a close second in Saxony, with 30.6 per cent of the vote.

In another worrying development for Germany’s mainstream, the fledgling Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) – a far-left party that has questioned the country’s support for Ukraine and shares some of the AfD’s anti-immigration streak – came third in both states, despite only being founded earlier this year.

Although extremism has long been concentrated …