Sept. 9—The hysterical attempt to persuade voters in the state of Saxony-Anhalt that a vote for the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party would turn the state capital of Magdeburg into a “suburb of Moscow” and turn the entire state into a foothold for Russian President Vladimir Putin didn’t work. The Saxony-Anhalt state election on Sept. 6 resulted in a landslide victory for the AfD, which won a whopping 43.8% of the vote, while German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s ruling CDU party won only 17.2%.

Voter participation in this eastern state was high, 77.8%, due to an unprecedented mobilization on all sides—both for and against the AfD. Notably, 41% of those aged 18-25 (young and first-time voters) voted for the AfD, as well as a huge 60% of workers.