When the results for the Saxony-Anhalt state election were announced on Sunday evening, members of the far-right AfD were ecstatic – and so too were the more than 500,000 people that voted for them.
The party managed to get nearly 43.8 percent of the vote. For the first time since the end of World War II, a party classified by Germany's domestic intelligence agency as "confirmed right-wing extremist" could govern a state in the Bundesrepublik.
The feeling is very different among other residents, many of whom campaigned tirelessly in a bid to keep the AfD out of power. Overall, around 1.3 million in the state that is home to a total of 2.14 million inhabitants cast a vote in Sunday's election.
Although it's still unclear whether the AfD will take control of the government (they just missed out on an absolute majority), there are fears over what the landslide win means for people from minority groups, including the LGBTQ community and people with an immigration background.
READ ALSO: What happens next after the AfD's win in Saxony-Anhalt?
Better-than-expected result for the Greens
Despite getting just nine percent of the vote, the Green party did better than expected. Polls ahead of the election predicted the Greens would scoop just around five to six percent.
In the city of Magdeburg, the Greens even came second with 16.5 percent of the vote, after the AfD's top showing of 32.6 percent.
Josephin Winkler, a board member for the Greens in Magdeburg, told The Local the results were encouraging but that they were devastated to see the loss in support for other "democratic parties".
"We all had tear in the eye from joy and also from anger and fear," she said.
Winkler said the Greens are worried about the possibility of CDU representatives defecting to the AfD. The AfD needs just three seats to achieve an absolute majority which would allow them to form a single-party government.
"We are rather pessimistic about that because in the past some members of the CDU fraction in the Landtag, already were sympathetic to the AfD," she said.
"It's clear that the AfD does not necessarily need to make a coalition with another party. They just need to convince three people to join them, and that's worrying."
'People have learned nothing'
Many voters in Magdeburg fear the worst.
Klaus, 80, told news site 20 Minuten that he is concerned Germany is "moving closer to 1933".
"People haven’t learnt anything from the past," he said, adding, "I don’t want to go through that again. I don’t want my grandchild to grow up in a fascist world."
He said that the rhetoric of the AfD's lead candidate Ulrich Siegmund strikes him as more moderate than that of other high profile AfD politicians like Björn Höcke or Tino Chrupalla, "but to me, that’s hidden fascism".
READ ALSO: What could the AfD do in Saxony-Anhalt after election win?
The Green party voter is particularly concerned about the future of children with foreign roots.
Winkler expressed a similar sentiment. When asked whether she felt worried as a resident, Winkler said, "I'd be worried to be going out wearing a Magdeburg Greens T-shirt, but I will just not do that at the moment.
"But I'm more worried for all the people who look foreign."
Some people are mulling leaving the state.
"We have some members that clearly said, 'Okay, if the AfD wins, I will have to move.' And those are members who are trans people, who are gay, lesbian...or are immigrants," Winkler said.
'Different understanding of reality'
Many people are wondering why the AfD gained so much support in Magdeburg.
During campaigning, Winkler said she noticed voters in general are concerned about the economy and the lack of business and opportunities in Saxony-Anhalt.
She said a lot of AfD voters did not want to talk to Green members. But for those who did, Winkler observed that people seemed to have a "completely different understanding of reality".
"Their perception is just so different from ours, which they get from alternative sources of media," said Winkler.
Experts say the role of fake news, whether disinformation or misinformation, spreads faster than ever due to social media.
READ ALSO: 'Like a MAGA campaign' - why is the AfD so popular in Saxony-Anhalt?
Whatever happens next, the Greens plan to keep checks on the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt and will call on the courts to intervene if the far-right party tries to "implement policies that are against the Grundgesetz [Germany's constitution]".
"We still would like to keep our promise: to hinder right-wing extremism in any way we can," said Winkler.
Winkler said she hopes that the current nationwide demos, calling on suspected or confirmed far-right extremist parties to be banned, have an impact – and play a role in stopping defections to the AfD.
"I'm hoping that the CDU finally wakes up, that this is their wake-up call, that they notice these guys are really dangerous, and they can destroy our democracy if they just go on like that," she said.
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