Overview
- Reiner Haseloff, in office since 2011, told Bild-Zeitung he would consider leaving Saxony-Anhalt if the AfD formed the government, calling that prospect an “unerträgliche Atmosphäre.”
- The AfD, classified as gesichert rechtsextrem by the state Verfassungsschutz, has chosen Ulrich Siegmund as its top candidate for the September 6, 2026, Landtagswahl.
- Haseloff has not yet decided whether to stand again as the CDU’s Spitzenkandidat and plans to announce his decision in the coming weeks.
- His departure remarks drew sharp rebukes from figures including Sahra Wagenknecht, who called them excessive for a state premier.
- Sachsen-Anhalt’s current government is a coalition of CDU, SPD and FDP, with the AfD serving as the Landtag’s second-largest faction ahead of the 2026 vote.