Ulrich Siegmund gave the Alternative for Germany (AfD) its first statewide victory in the Saxony-Anhalt election. The 35-year-old from the eastern state has been the party’s smiling face and now has a real chance of becoming the state’s next chancellor. Siegmund, who joined the AfD in its early stages more than a decade ago, said his schooling in business psychology taught him the importance of a positive mood for consumers.
He initially created a company that sold systems that dispensed mood-enhancing scents to customers ranging from stores to nursing homes, and he has displayed the same instinct for creating a positive mood in selling his party’s message to voters.
The weekly magazine Der Spiegel called Siegmund “Germany’s most dangerous man” for his ability to put a friendly face on a party that German authorities classify as part of the far-right and hostile to the country’s basic democratic order. His family-friendly style and easygoing public relations have drawn voters to his campaign rallies, supported by a local party organization that has avoided the bitter internal divisions seen in other AfD branches. He avoids the harsh rhetoric of his colleagues or the open disdain for opponents of party leader Alice Weidel.
But he rejects the far-right label as an example of what he calls the political establishment’s anti-democratic determination to prevent alternative voices from gaining ground. Siegmund criticizes Germany’s asylum policies and green energy initiatives, which he says have driven up prices, and says Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s support for Ukraine has unnecessarily pitted Germany against Russia and raised the cost of oil and gas.