Germany has avoided having a far-right party as the strongest force in a second state on Sunday, just weeks the anti-migrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) became the first far-right party in post-war history to win an election.

Brandenburg is a longstanding stronghold for the party. But it is located in Germany’s relatively impoverished east, where the anti-immigrant A f D performs far better than in the west. That made this election a test of whether the SPD could beat the populists on its home ground.

The Social Democrats of Chancellor Olaf Scholz have won an election in the eastern German state of Brandenburg. They gained a narrow edge over a growing far-right party.

The premier of the eastern German state of Brandenburg, Dietmar Woidke, has described the performance of his centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) in Sunday's state elections as a great success. "We have made up ground like never before in the history of our state,

Germans in the state of Brandenburg were voting in a regional election on Sunday with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) expected to finish first, building on successes in other eastern states and beating Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats in one of their traditional strongholds.

The centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) appear headed for a narrow election victory over the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in the eastern German state of Brandenburg, according to initial projected results.

An exit poll released after voting ended in a state election in Brandenburg, Germany on Sunday showed the Social Democrats with a slight edge over a growing right-wing party. The voting took place three weeks after the party made gains in two other states in eastern Germany.

Exit polls in the eastern German state of Brandenburg gave the ruling centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) a narrow lead over the far-right Alternative for Germany in Sunday's state parliamentary elections.