AfD Victory Sparks Concerns About LGBTQ Rights

The AfD won the state election on Sunday in Saxony-Anhalt, but narrowly missed an outright majority. Together with the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW), which barely cleared the five-percent hurdle, the far-right party could potentially form a government. The two parties, defined in part by their closeness to the Russian regime and their stance against queer rights, would hold 44 seats in the state parliament under the provisional final result — two more than the absolute majority. The democratic parties CDU, SPD, Greens, and Left, by contrast, would secure only 39 seats.

The Green party’s lead candidate, Susan Sziborra-Seidlitz, warned on election night on MDR television that several groups have particular reasons to fear: “These are, for example, people with a migration background who live and work in our country, who fear being forced out, or that the mood will shift so that it becomes uncomfortable for them to live here. There are strong women whom the AfD would silence or send back to the kitchen. And there are queers in this country who would have their rights curtailed not only but also ridiculed by the AfD. All of these people are afraid,” Sziborra-Seidlitz said.

In Halle, the reaction from the CSD was defiant. In an Instagram story, the organizers explained: “We were queer and colorful before the AfD, we are now, and we will be long after the AfD.” The Halle CSD takes place on Saturday.

Also, Ferda Ataman, the Independent Federal Commissioner for Anti-Discrimination, urged minorities not to be intimidated, even though the result was a “shock”: people were “afraid — especially people with disabilities, migrants and their descendants, queer people as well as Jewish and Muslim people. They fear that the demagoguery against minorities and dissenters after the election could lead to discrimination or even violence,” Ataman said. Her call: “Look after each other and seek help at anti-discrimination offices if you are disadvantaged at work or in everyday life. The democratic rule of law is on your side.” Ataman offered local anti-discrimination offices assistance, for example in advising those affected by discrimination in daily life.

AfD wants “Tradition” instead of Support for Queer People
The AfD had announced restrictions on sexual and gender minorities in its “100-Day Immediate Program.” Thus, the rainbow flag, as a symbol of “devaluation of the family and traditional societal normality,” should be banned in schools entirely, and funds should be allocated to “tradition” rather than to “rainbow ideology” (TheColu.mn reported). During the campaign, AfD Premier Candidate Ulrich Siegmund had also commented on queer policy: “That cannot be normal” (TheColu.mn reported).

Joyful clamor from AfD party leader Alice Weidel. The politician, who lives in Switzerland with a rainbow-family, sees a “clear mandate to govern” for her party. She urged the democratic parties to abandon the exclusion of the AfD. In an interview with ZDF, the Bundestag member emphasized, “Our hand is always outstretched to implement good positions for a good Germany and, above all, here for a good Saxony-Anhalt as well.”

Wagenknecht calls for a “turnaround” in Saxony-Anhalt

BSW founder Sahra Wagenknecht announced on X that they intend to help shape Saxony-Anhalt’s future: “Now there will hopefully be majorities in the Magdeburg state parliament for a shift in energy policy, an end to Russia sanctions, better education, and a fundamental reform of public broadcasting. The majorities that the BSW seeks to mobilize aim to improve people’s lives.” In particular, the rejection of public-service broadcasting coverage links AfD and BSW — both parties feel they are repeatedly treated unfairly by journalists and want to shrink the broadcasting system.

The result is also attracting international attention: In the United States, President Donald Trump published on his Truth Social platform a chart projecting 44.4 percent for the AfD. Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk congratulated the far-right party on his platform X: “Well done!” Musk, who has said his foray into politics was spurred by his own transphobic views, had previously run AfD campaign appeals.

Russia: “Germany has awakened”
Russia also celebrated the AfD victory: Kirill Dmitriev, Putin’s special envoy with close ties to the United States, congratulated the AfD with apparently carefully chosen rhetoric from German history: “The Germans have spoken and Germany has awakened,” the Putin ally wrote in English. Former Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán also celebrated the AfD victory as “a huge night for Germany and Europe!” (dk)

Updated later with responses from CSD Halle and the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner