Ulrich Sigmund, the state premier candidate who led the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) to a landslide in the Saxony-Anhalt state parliament election, proposed cooperation to Elon Musk, the Tesla chief executive officer (CEO), who had publicly expressed support.
According to the Guardian, a British daily, on the 7th (local time), candidate Sigmund posted in English on the social media platform X on election night, saying to Musk, "Thank you for your support and for presenting a clear and very important perspective on the political changes of our time."
He added, "If we take responsibility here, we would gladly welcome the opportunity to cooperate strongly and constructively," and said, "Germany will again be a place worth investing in."
Earlier, when Alice Weidel, the AfD co-leader, left a congratulatory message for candidate Sigmund and the Saxony-Anhalt AfD, Musk replied in German, "Gut gemacht!" (Well done!). Sigmund then expressed gratitude to Musk and a willingness to cooperate.
Musk has supported the AfD through op-eds and public remarks. In January last year, about a month before the German federal parliamentary election, he virtually held an online campaign by attending an AfD event by video.
U.S. President Donald Trump and figures on the Russian side also welcomed the AfD's victory. President Trump posted on Truth Social a graph comparing party vote shares in this election and the 2021 election without further explanation.
Kirill Dmitriev, the economic envoy to Russian President Vladimir Putin, reposted a capture of Trump's post and called it "the historic victory of a pragmatic AfD." The Guardian described the AfD as a pro-Kremlin party that argues for halting support for Ukraine and stopping refugee status for Ukrainians.
The AfD won 43.8% of the vote in this election and took 39 of the 83 seats. It is three seats short of a majority of 42, so it cannot form the state government alone.
Across Europe, voices of concern rose over the AfD's surge. Benjamin Haddad, France's Minister for European Affairs, called the election result "a pivotal moment for Europe" and said, "Nationalism and xenophobia can never be the answer."
He added, "We must listen humbly to anger, concern and fear, and respond to them," and emphasized, "We must not forget history. That is the meaning of the path chosen by France and Germany."
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk criticized, "Only fools or traitors in Poland would welcome the victory of Germany's AfD."
The German Economic Institute (IW), a private economic research institute based in Cologne, warned that an AfD government could have wide-ranging effects not only in Saxony-Anhalt but across the German economy. In Saxony-Anhalt, where reliance on foreign labor is high due to aging and population decline, the AfD's anti-immigration policy could produce "catastrophic" results.
Critics also worry that if the pro-Kremlin AfD leads the State Governments, sensitive information could be leaked to Russia. The AfD dismissed such claims and said it would push reforms, arguing that domestic intelligence agencies are biased.