The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) won 43.8% of the vote in local elections held in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt on Sept. 6, three seats short of an absolute majority, while Chancellor Friedrich Merz's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) won only 17.2%, marking its worst electoral defeat in decades, DW reported Sept. 7. The AfD said it would seek to court defectors from other parties to reach a majority. Merz acknowledged the CDU's painful loss and promised consequences, but vowed to stay in office and pursue his reforms.