Historic right-wing German election win: What does it mean?

CGTN Europe

On Sunday, AfD became the first far-right political party in decades to win a German regional election – but what does that mean precisely for German politics in general and Chancellor Olaf Scholz in particular? CGTN’s Peter Oliver explains.   READ MORE: https://bit.ly/4cOGwGT   #Germany #Elections #AfD #Thuringia #Saxony

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00:00This is the first time that a far-right party has taken the most votes in an election in Germany at this level since the Nazi era.

00:08However, the AfD stand very little chance of actually forming a ruling government here because no other party will work for them.

00:16There is no direct impact on Chancellor Olaf Scholz. This is a state matter, not a federal one.

00:22But it wasn't a good run-out for the three parties making up Scholz's ruling coalition.

00:28The Greens and the Free Democrats didn't pass the threshold needed to enter parliament, while Scholz's own Social Democrats dropped points and finished fifth.

00:37Thuringia is a heartland for the AfD. This part of the former East Germany people felt left behind by the economic boom years.

00:46And in the run-up to this vote, a fatal stabbing carried out by a failed asylum applicant in the west of the country certainly bolstered AfD's anti-migrant stance.

00:56The party itself, though, is beset and riddled by scandal, not least that, well, some of their leaders are accused of having very close ties to far-right extremists.

01:06So it remains to be seen whether they'll be able to repeat the results they took here in Thuringia and in Saxony on the federal level next year.

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