Berlin

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in Germany won a landmark first regional vote on Sunday (Sept 1) in the former East German state of Thuringia, exit polls showed, in a blow to Chancellor Olaf Scholz ahead of national elections in 2025.

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The AfD took between 30.5 and 33.5 per cent of the vote in Thuringia, according to exit polls, with the conservative CDU in second place at around 24.5 per cent.

A report by the news agency AFP said that this time,  AfD was also neck-and-neck with the CDU (Christian Democratic Union of Germany) for first place in the neighbouring state of Saxony, which also held a regional election on Sunday.

AfD unlikely to come to power in either state, but...

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AFP reported that the AfD is unlikely to come to power in either state because other parties have ruled out working with the far right to form a government.

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However, Sunday's results were still a political earthquake, as it would represent the first time in Germany's post-World War II history that a far-right party has won a state election.

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If results are confirmed, it would also be a huge blow for Scholz's Social Democrats and the other parties in his fractious coalition government, the Greens and the liberal FDP.

'A historic success'

Alice Weidel, the co-leader of the AfD, hailed the result as a "historic success", while the party's other co-leader, Tino Chrupalla, said the party had a "clear mandate for government" in Thuringia. 

Chrupalla said both states had sent the message that "there should be a change of politics" and the AfD was "ready and willing to talk to all parties."

(With inputs from agencies)