AfD politician Tobias Rausch elected speaker of Saxony-Anhalt state parliament

The parliament of the German eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt elected Tobias Rausch as its speaker on Tuesday, October 6, 2026. The BBC reported that Rausch is a member of the far-right Alternative for Germany party, known as the AfD. It is the first time since World War Two that a far-right party has secured a parliamentary speaker position in Germany. [1][2][3][7]

The 35-year-old candidate comfortably won the vote in Magdeburg after receiving support from nine lawmakers outside his own party. The BBC noted that the victory comes one month after the AfD scored a decisive election result in Saxony-Anhalt, where the party fell three seats short of an absolute majority. [1]

Opponents described the election of Rausch as a watershed moment and an absolute disgrace, according to reports by the BBC and Yahoo. Outside the parliament building, protesters gathered with banners bearing the slogan, never again is now. [1][5]

While the role of parliamentary speaker is largely symbolic, Rausch stated following the vote that the days of political firewalls should be a thing of the past. Political figures on the left expressed outrage at the outcome. [1][5]