Mostly false in its core claim of being “robbed of victory” via systematic manipulation, though the underlying vote split numbers are real.
welt.de
AfD won the September 6, 2026, Saxony-Anhalt state election (Landtagswahl) with a clear first-place finish of 43.8% (more than doubling its 2021 result), far ahead of the CDU at 17.2%. It took 39 of 83 seats—short of the 42 needed for an absolute majority. Turnout was high (~77.8%). Mainstream reporting from German outlets (Zeit, Tagesschau, MDR, Reuters, etc.) confirms this as a historic AfD win, not a loss or “flip” of overall victory.
zeit.de
The mail-in (Briefwahl) vs. in-person disparity is factual and widely reported:In-person (Urne): AfD ~51.2%, CDU ~14.5%.
Mail-in: AfD ~24.3% (roughly even with CDU at ~24.3%); other parties performed better among postal voters.
Mail-in made up roughly 21–27% of votes.
Early/partial counts and projections showed AfD higher (around 44+% in some reports), and without mail-in ballots the party would mathematically have reached an absolute majority of seats.
welt.de
This pattern is not anomalous for AfD. The party has long discouraged mail-in voting among its supporters and performs relatively weaker among postal voters in other elections too (different demographics, urban/rural, age, and political attitudes drive the gap). Officials and election researchers (including fact-checks from Tagesschau/ARD) state there is no evidence of systematic manipulation or structural fraud that flipped the result. Isolated administrative issues (e.g., some duplicate ballots that were invalidated and replaced) and one investigated nursing-home claim occurred, but authorities found no substantiation of widespread wrongdoing affecting the outcome. German postal voting has established procedures, public counting elements, and a track record of high integrity overall.
tagesschau.de
The Free Republic post (republishing Gateway Pundit framing) accurately notes the percentage drop from early figures and the large in-person/mail-in gap, plus quotes from critics labeling it “systematic manipulation.” However, calling it “robbed of victory” or implying the election was stolen is not supported: AfD still won decisively by a massive margin and remains the strongest force. The absolute-majority shortfall is real and attributable to the known voting-mode differences, not proven fraud. Claims of systematic rigging circulate in partisan circles but are rejected by election authorities, mainstream reporting, and independent fact-checkers.
“The party has long discouraged mail-in voting among its supporters”
seems like a stupid idea, parties should be encouraging their supporters to vote by whatever means is most convenient for them
“They” will go to any lengths to lie about voter theft worldwide.