It is a setback for the AfD. In the local elections in Thuringia, she performed significantly worse than expected. The party of right-winger Björn Höcke did not manage to win the district administrator and master elections at the first attempt, but came under attack from the CDU in a number of local parliaments. 9 of 13 AfD candidates made it to the runoff or were close to it after the last count. Only in the Altenburger Land district are the right-wing populists ahead. However, the performance of a neo-Nazi in the district election in the Hildburghausen district caused a stir . More from Achim Unser Saalfeld Rudolstadt in Thuringia is currently a symbol of the mess that the AfD has maneuvered itself into. Because here the AfD was fighting less for votes than against itself. Björn Höcke campaigned for an alternative to the AfD because the party was not making as much impact locally as he wanted. Thuringia's AfD boss now received the receipt for this in the election. The rebels of the original AfD are far ahead of Höcke's troops. Thuringia The AfD's recently predicted breakthrough has not materialized. The party only came in first in one district, but even here it has to go into the runoff. Thuringia's CDU boss Mario Vogt therefore thinks today is a good day for Thuringia. The CDU is the strongest force in the district administrator and mayoral elections in the first round. In many districts we also have a chance of winning the election in the second round. One reason for the AfD's weakness is perhaps that the Thuringian AfD leader was just sentenced to a significant fine in court. Then the nationwide, if not Europe-wide, scandals. There are the SS trivializations of European election top candidate Maximilian Krah, followed by the expulsion of all AfD MPs from the right-wing faction in the European Parliament. The public prosecutor is aggressively investigating MIT candidate Petr Bystron because of corruption allegations. He is said to have accepted money from Russia . AfD leader Alice Weidel is desperately looking for the positive. Such things. Such days. Moments like these, when things aren't going so well, are always an opportunity. A chance to learn lessons in order to continue to grow and professionalize ourselves further. At the beginning of the year, the AfD got 22% in surveys. It is currently around 16. Since the secret meeting between AfD politicians and right-wing extremists in Potsdam, the party has gone into a tailspin. This local election in Thuringia was seen as a mood test for the state elections in September. For the AfD it was a failed dress rehearsal.