Far-Right AfD Party Scores District Victory in First for Germany
- Candidate wins executive post in a part of Thuringia
- State official calls it an ‘alert for all democratic forces’
Robert Sesselmann, center, celebrates at the AfD party headquarters in Thuringia, Sonneberg, on June 25.
Photographer: Martin Schutt/picture alliance/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
German voters elected a member of the far-right Alternative for Germany as district administrator for the first time, handing the party a victory in an eastern stronghold as its national support surges.
The party’s candidate, Robert Sesselmann, took about 53% in a two-man runoff Sunday in the Sonneberg district of Thuringia state, compared with about 47% for the Christian Democratic Union’s Robert Koepper. All other parties had endorsed Koepper in a bid to avert a victory for Alternative for Germany, known as AfD.