German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has vowed to stay in office despite the far right's triumph in a state election that has brought anti-immigrant, pro-Kremlin politicians within striking distance of power. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing The Guardian.

Appearing ashen-faced before reporters in Berlin, Merz said the landslide victory by the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) in Saxony-Anhalt had shaken his conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) "to its very foundations." He called it "the worst electoral defeat the CDU has suffered in years, in decades."

The AfD and its candidate Ulrich Siegmund fell short of an absolute majority with nearly 44% of the vote, but could yet create Germany's first far-right state government since the Nazi period. Exit polls indicated deep dissatisfaction with the political establishment, with only 9% approving of Merz's performance.

Siegmund, a media-savvy former fragrance salesman, mocked the 70-year-old Merz as "a very good campaigner" for the AfD. He also tapped into grievances in the former communist east, where voters complain of being treated as "second-class citizens" more than three decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Merz conceded his own low poll ratings played a role in the loss: "I know that I personally was a constant topic in this election campaign. We must try – myself included – to reach people more effectively, in the full range of their emotions."

He insisted: "My determination to continue on the path of reform is unbroken. Giving up is not an option for me."

Merz assured Germany's allies that "our institutions are resilient and stable" and promised to stay the course on Ukraine: "I will not budge a single millimetre from my fundamental conviction that we must defend our freedom against Russia as well."

He said Moscow would cheer the AfD's success and accused it of lending support to the far right's campaign, with two more state elections due this month amid alleged Russian interference.

CDU state premier Sven Schulze acknowledged his party had "no mandate" to govern after its humiliating 17% result.

Several influential commentators openly called for Merz's immediate replacement. Der Spiegel editor-in-chief Dirk Kurbjuweit said: "Germany needs a clean slate, a fresh start, and that starts with Friedrich Merz. He is evidently the wrong man for this office in these times."

The AfD's Saxony-Anhalt chapter is listed as "confirmed rightwing extremist" by the domestic intelligence service. It has pledged mass deportations of unwelcome immigrants and asylum seekers, which critics say would be illegal, while promising massive boosts in social welfare spending with unclear financing.

The AfD has also targeted state support for public broadcasters and cultural institutions it deems "unpatriotic." The party did not win enough seats to elect Siegmund as state premier, but leaders said they seek to pick off rebel lawmakers from other parties. It is only three seats short of a majority.

The conservative-left populist BSW party, which favors restoring ties with Russia and largely blocking immigration, signaled openness to working with the AfD but ruled out joining the state government before the election.

In the 13 years of the AfD's existence, mainstream parties have maintained a "firewall" against the far right, refusing formal cooperation. The strategy appears to have backfired, as the permanent "outsider" role appeals to voters fed up with politics as usual.