Turks in Germany anxious after AfD wins in Saxony-Anhalt

Ahead of Sunday's election, people of migration background went on a symbolic daylong strike in the eastern state of Saxony-AnhaltImage: Monika Stefanek/DWAdvertisementThe nationalist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party's 43.8% share of the vote in the state election in Saxony-Anhalt has prompted nationwide alarm. People of Turkish origin are especially worried.

Gökay Sofuoglu, the co-chair of the Turkish Community in Germany (TGD), told DW that business owners he has spoken with in Saxony-Anhalt have been especially alarmed. "After the AfD's success, some were thinking of shutting up shop and leaving, first Saxony-Anhalt, then Germany," Sofuoglu said.

He said that initial response was emotional. "We've had a chance to speak to some of them again since," Sofuoglu said. "They're going to wait and see: They're waiting for the formation of a government."

Sofuoglu said people of Turkish descent in Saxony-Anhalt regard the rise of the AfD "as a problem for Germany as a whole." He said the party's election win was a threat to the stability of democracy in Germany.

Although the AfD campaigns heavily against migration, Sofuoglu said he believed that the party's true target is Germany's constitution. He said many people of Turkish origin were inclined to see the party's election win as an immediate threat to their communities rather than look at the AfD's wider aims.

"Much as the rise of the AfD affects us, this is a generally anti-democratic development, and we, along with all democratic forces, must act to counter it," he said.

The AfD's victory has also raised concerns about an increase in nationalist violence within Germany. "There's a fear that the coming days could see more attacks like the ones carried out by the National Socialist Underground, and that there will be no clarification of what's behind them," Sofuoglu said, referring a yearslong neo-Nazi terror spree in Germany.

A feared increase in nationalist violence is only one part of the discussion. "I don't think that just being concerned achieves anything," Alaz Sümer, a lawyer who works with a nongovernmental organization in Berlin, told DW. "You have to think about the causes. I don't think the established parties have sufficiently addressed the problems that allowed the AfD to become so strong."

Sümer came to Germany nine years ago to study. He's currently working on a PhD about extreme-right political parties, and advises people from migrant communities on how to get their international qualifications recognized in Germany.

"Saying 'the AfD is bad, the AfD is dangerous' is the easy way," Sümer said. "We already know that."

Irmak, who asked that her real name not be used, moved to the eastern city of Leipzig to study 12 years ago. She said the AfD's victory was worrying, but not a surprise.

"It was to be predicted that the far right would do well, and would emerge from the election as the strongest party," Irmak said. "But the ground for this result was also prepared by government policies not addressing citizens' needs."

Irmak said the rise of the AfD would not address Germany's structural problems. "Even with a change of government, it won't alter the need for workers and young people," she said, "especially not in a state with an elderly population, like Saxony-Anhalt."

Sümer said German authorities would need to be cautious in dealing with the AfD, which he called an extremist party that is now "a reality in Germany." He said banning the AfD, as many have called for, would only make the party stronger.

If the AfD were banned, Sümer said, a new party would be founded, and more extremist members might fall in with less-visible organizations. That would make Germany "even more uninhabitable" for migrants, he said.

Sümer said Germany's other parties should engage with AfD voters to understand their motives. He said the problem of racism in Germany was bigger than just the AfD, and that the issues that migrants face withing the country were not created by to the party.

According to the Federal Statistical Office, Saxony-Anhalt had a population of about 2.1 million people in 2025. Approximately 249,000, or just over 10%, had a migration background; 6,120 were people of Turkish origin. There are roughly 3 million people of Turkish origin in Germany.

This article was originally written in German.