Germany's AfD falls short of absolute majority in Saxony-Anhalt

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) claimed victory in Saxony-Anhalt, but failed to secure an absolute majority of seats in the eastern state's parliament, according to preliminary results.

The AfD won Sunday's election with 43.8% of the vote, ahead of the conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) on 17.2%, the preliminary results released early on Monday showed.

A trio of left-wing parties - The Left, the Greens and the Social Democrats (SPD) - passed the 5% hurdle, each hovering around 9%. 

The populist Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) also passed the 5% hurdle to enter the state parliament. The pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) secured 2.6% of the vote, failing to reach the threshold.

Turnout was almost 78% according to the preliminary results, the highest in Saxony-Anhalt since German reunification in 1990, reflecting the huge attention generated by Sunday's election.

Despite the AfD's election win, it is not yet clear who will lead the next government in Saxony-Anhalt, as the country's mainstream parties refuse to work with it, a policy infamously known as the "firewall."