Is the EU planning to freeze funds to German states that voted for the AfD?

Claims circulating online allege that the EU is threatening to block funds intended for the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, after the far-right AfD party won a recent election there. However, there's no evidence that this is the case.

Is Brussels trying to freeze EU funds to a German state that voted for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in an election in early September?

According to several social media posts amassing thousands of views, likes and shares, and often with a picture of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen attached, it is.

They allege that millions, or even billions, of euros could be withheld from the state of Saxony-Anhalt, located in east-central Germany, after voters handed the AfD a landslide victory on 6 September.

However, the 39 seats it won were not enough to command a majority, even though the party secured more than twice as many seats as any other party.

The AfD has since struggled to establish a coalition, however, as the other parties have refused to collaborate with it.

Von der Leyen herself has repeatedly criticised the AfD in the past, and her own centre-right CDU party suffered a crushing defeat, winning just 17.2% of the vote and falling to 15 seats. This possibly fuelled the suggestions online that she is behind the scheme to freeze the EU funds.

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