Merz calls AfD presidency of Saxony-Anhalt parliament a ‘historic break’

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called the election of AfD lawmaker Tobias Rausch as president of Saxony-Anhalt’s state parliament a ‘historic break’ on Wednesday, October 7. Rausch had won a secret ballot at the parliament’s opening sitting the previous day. His 48 yes votes exceeded the 44 seats held by the AfD and BSW together, making the result a dispute over support for the AfD beyond those parties without revealing who cast any individual vote.

The state parliament said 82 of its 83 members attended the October 6 sitting. Rausch, nominated by the AfD parliamentary group, received 48 yes votes, 29 no votes and five abstentions; all 82 ballots were valid. DW reported that the AfD and BSW together held 44 seats. The totals mean at least four yes votes came from outside those parties, though the secret ballot cannot show how any member voted.

Why Merz called the Saxony-Anhalt vote a historic break

Speaking in Berlin on October 7, Merz said political extremism was forcing its way into German state legislatures ‘with a vengeance’. He described Rausch’s election as a ‘historic break’. According to DW, this was the first time since 1945 that a far-right politician had been chosen to lead a German state parliament. The office now places an AfD lawmaker at the head of Saxony-Anhalt’s newly constituted legislature.

Merz said he was ‘deeply concerned and somewhat appalled’ by the result. He warned that anyone who voted for the AfD was ‘playing the extremists’ game and undermining credibility’, and said such support was incompatible with the values of his Christian Democratic Union. His criticism was directed at the possibility that lawmakers from beyond the AfD and BSW had backed Rausch; the vote count establishes that some did, but cannot establish their parties or motives.

What the new Saxony-Anhalt parliament has confirmed

The election took place during the first sitting of Saxony-Anhalt’s ninth-period parliament. After the members established that the chamber could conduct business and completed its initial procedural votes, the AfD nominated Rausch, its parliamentary manager, for president. The Landtag’s account records the ballot and the resulting appointments, providing a formal tally separate from the political claims made in response to it.

The chamber then elected two vice-presidents: Hans-Thomas Tillschneider of the AfD and Carsten Borchert of the CDU. Social Democrat Armin Willingmann was also a candidate, but received 33 yes votes and 48 no votes and was not elected. Rausch subsequently declared the ninth-period parliament constituted and closed its first sitting, according to the Landtag’s account.

Election gains and concerns among residents

The parliamentary vote followed the AfD’s gains in Saxony-Anhalt’s September regional election. The Associated Press reported that the party had achieved its strongest regional result yet and described Rausch’s presidency as an initial symbolic victory. AP also reported that a decision on the state’s next governor was not expected before December. The election of a parliament president therefore does not itself settle who will lead the state government.

AP’s reporting on the election aftermath described uncertainty among some residents. Magdeburg resident Ola Akhras, who fled Syria with her husband in 2018 and has two young daughters, told the news agency that ‘we don’t feel welcome anymore’. The family had discussed whether to return to Syria. Her account illustrates concerns following the regional election; it does not establish a new policy change caused by the parliamentary ballot.

What remains unknown about the secret ballot

The official tally fixes the outcome at 48 yes votes, but it cannot identify the members who supported Rausch. The AfD and BSW’s 44 seats together make support from outside those parties certain at a minimum of four votes, while leaving open how many members of either party voted yes, no or abstained. Neither the CDU explanation reported by DW nor Merz’s alternative suggestion can be verified from the published ballot totals.

For now, the confirmed institutional change is that Rausch presides over the newly constituted state parliament, with Tillschneider and Borchert elected as vice-presidents. The sources do not establish a policy consequence from his election. The next major leadership question identified in AP’s reporting concerns the state governorship, which it said was not expected to be decided before December.