AfD Claims Mandate in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania as Merz's CDU Suffers Historic Defeat

The far-right Alternative for Germany celebrated a strong electoral performance in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania on Sunday, with its top candidate claiming a mandate to govern the state.

At an election night gathering in Schwerin, top candidate Leif-Erik Holm and party co-leader Tino Chrupalla joined supporters as the first projections were announced. Holm said the party had gained around 20 percentage points compared with the previous election, describing the outcome as "a truly strong result."

The projection put the AfD narrowly ahead of the Social Democrats in the northeastern state, with the party on 37 percent of the vote, according to exit polling by public broadcaster ARD.

Holm said the numbers showed voters wanted change and that his party intended to become the strongest force. "We have the mandate to govern here in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania," he said, adding that the AfD would invite all parties to talks and expected them to be open to dialogue.

The result formed part of a difficult night for Chancellor Friedrich Merz, whose center-right Christian Democratic Union was projected to take just 5 percent in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania — the lowest result for the party in any state since World War II.

Merz's authority had already been damaged by the CDU's defeat to the AfD in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt on September 6. That outcome unsettled many Germans who had believed the country had developed a lasting immunity to nationalism after confronting its Nazi past through education and laws against persecution.

In Berlin, which also voted on Sunday, the AfD was projected to win 15.7 percent, according to ARD. Despite the gains, the party remained far from being able to form a regional government on its own.

Merz vowed to press ahead with potentially painful reforms to Europe's largest economy despite the electoral setback.