Germany’s anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) is celebrating a “historic success”, with a big victory for the far-right party in the eastern state of Thuringia.
The result gives the far right its first win in a state parliament election since World War Two, although it has little hope of forming a government in Thuringia because other parties are unlikely to work with it.
The AfD’s top candidate in Thuringia, Björn Höcke, who is a highly controversial figure in Germany, hailed a “historic victory” and spoke of his great pride. He failed to win a direct mandate for the state parliament, but secured a seat because he was top of his party list.
It is most certainly a big component. All you need to do to see it is look at the dichotomy between voting results of the former DDR regions compared to former West German regions nowadays. There’s a meaningful split.