All right on the night: AfD’s victory

Summary of All right on the night: AfD’s victory

by The Economist

24m•September 7, 2026
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Overview of The Intelligence from The Economist

This episode opens with a major political shock in eastern Germany, where the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) surged to a huge victory in Saxony-Anhalt, raising the real possibility that it could lead a state government for the first time since World War II. The show then turns to climate and aviation, explaining why contrails may account for a large share of flying’s warming impact and how a new North Atlantic trial could reduce them cheaply. It closes with a cultural report from South Korea on Buddhism’s unexpected appeal among young people, driven by temple events, wellness culture, and creative reinvention.

Key Takeaways

  • AfD breakthrough in Saxony-Anhalt: The party won an unexpectedly large share of the vote, putting it close to governing power and badly weakening the mainstream conservative CDU.
  • Coalition arithmetic may be decisive: The small populist-left BSW could become pivotal because it has not ruled out cooperation with the AfD.
  • Contrails are a meaningful climate problem: Persistent plane trails can warm the planet nearly as much as aviation’s CO₂ emissions, especially when formed in cold, humid air.
  • A practical fix may already exist: Slight altitude changes can avoid many contrails, and a new trial aims to test whether air traffic control can do this safely and at scale.
  • Buddhism is getting a youth makeover in South Korea: Events like meditation festivals, matchmaking retreats, expos, and even AI monk chatbots are drawing young attendees.
  • The revival is uncertain but notable: It may be a lasting shift, or just a trend, but Buddhism is currently seen favorably by many secular Koreans.

Politics: AfD’s Victory in Eastern Germany

What happened

  • The AfD won a stunning 44% in Saxony-Anhalt, far beyond expectations.
  • The result suggests the party could have the mandate to try to form a government.
  • The CDU, which has governed the state, suffered a dramatic collapse, falling to around 17%.

Why it matters

  • The AfD is described as so extreme that other European populist-right parties often refuse to work with it.
  • A far-right state premier in Germany would be symbolically huge, given the country’s postwar commitment to keeping extremists out of power.
  • The result is a serious setback for Chancellor Friedrich Merz and the CDU.

Possible next steps

  • The BSW may become the kingmaker if it cooperates with the AfD on specific issues.
  • If no viable government can be formed, the state could drift into a stalemate, with the current CDU premier remaining in place as acting leader until fresh elections.

Climate and Aviation: Cutting Contrails

Why contrails matter

  • Contrails are the visible trails left by aircraft in certain atmospheric conditions.
  • They can trap heat, and on average they have a warming effect.
  • Their climate impact may be roughly comparable to aviation’s CO₂ emissions.

How the solution works

  • The most important contrails form in cold, humid, ice-supersaturated regions high in the atmosphere.
  • These areas are often thin layers, like “pancakes,” and planes can often avoid them by flying slightly lower.
  • The trial, called Operation Blue Skies, is testing whether this can be done safely and routinely.

Why the North Atlantic is ideal

  • It is a major contrail hotspot relative to the amount of airspace involved.
  • Satellites and machine learning can track contrails and link them to specific flights.

Economic angle

  • The expected cost is relatively small:
    • a few extra minutes of flight time,
    • about 1–2% higher fuel costs in many cases.
  • Since only a small share of flights may generate most contrail warming, the climate benefit could be large for a modest cost.

South Korea: Buddhism Finds a New Audience

What’s happening

  • Buddhist organizations are staging events aimed at younger people:
    • Buddhist raves
    • meditation festivals
    • matchmaking retreats
    • large expos with merchandise and interactive displays

Why young Koreans are interested

  • Many young people describe life as:
    • stressful,
    • highly competitive,
    • uncertain.
  • Buddhism’s emphasis on coping with suffering and its lack of coercion appeal to secular Koreans.
  • A recent poll found Buddhism to be the most favorably viewed religion among secular Koreans.

Modernized Buddhism

  • Exhibitors are blending tradition with novelty:
    • an AI monk chatbot
    • a reggae-style response generator for worries
    • Buddhist-themed art, prayer beads, and singing bowls
  • Temples are also seeing record numbers of overnight guests.

Tension in the revival

  • Some monks worry that commercialization could dilute the religion’s teachings.
  • Others see the adaptations as a natural continuation of Buddhism’s long history of changing with the times.

Bigger Picture

  • In Germany, the AfD result underscores the normalization risk of radical politics in the mainstream electoral arena.
  • In climate policy, contrail avoidance looks like a rare example of a potentially fast, low-cost emissions fix.
  • In South Korea, Buddhism’s revival shows how ancient traditions can survive by adapting to modern pressures and aesthetics.