What AfD's election victory in Germany's Saxony-Anhalt could mean for Jewish life – analysis

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) achieved a historic victory in Saxony-Anhalt's state election, securing 43.8% of the vote and 39 of 83 seats, just three short of an absolute majority. This outcome could significantly impact Holocaust education and remembrance policies. The AfD's leader, Ulrich Siegmund, has faced criticism for his stance on Germany's Nazi past, including his refusal to call the Holocaust the most horrific crime in history and his attendance at a meeting discussing "remigration" for "insufficiently assimilated" German citizens of immigrant origin. Josef Schuster, president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, expressed his dismay, stating that "the damage caused by an AfD government could be enormous" regarding education policy.

• The AfD plans to strengthen state influence over teaching materials, abolish the State Center for Political Education in its current form, and cut funding for school trips to Nazi memorial sites.
• The party also aims to eliminate Saxony-Anhalt's funding for the German Lost Art Foundation, which researches cultural property seized from victims of Nazi persecution, arguing that such research perpetuates a "guilt complex."
• The Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW), holding five seats, may hold the balance of power. While ruling out a formal coalition with the AfD, BSW is open to cooperation on specific issues and has a sharply critical stance toward Israel, advocating for an arms embargo and recognition of a Palestinian state.