Alternative for Germany (AfD) may not have won the supermajority it sought in the Saxony-Anhalt state election on Sunday, but the far-right party did take another giant step toward power in a country whose postwar democracy was designed to prevent the return of right-wing extremism.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Monday he was "deeply shocked" after the Alternative for Germany (AfD) scored a resounding victory in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt. The far-right party

A blowout win by the far-right Alternative for Germany party in a state election has revealed a split among voters about whether to uphold a decades-old strategy for sidelining extremists.

The victory of a far-right party in a German state election has raised alarm across Europe. Many fear it heralds the demise of an anti-fascist consensus dating back to the defeat of the Nazis.

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is "very, very close" to taking power, its deputy parliamentary leader has told the BBC, after a historic victory in elections for the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt.