07 September 2026 – Short News

Today in our short news: The AfD wins Saxony-Anhalt with 43.8 percent, while the CDU crashes to 17.2 percent. The Trump administration is once again going to the Supreme Court to restrict mail voting ahead of the midterms. Germany is significantly expanding its drone defenses after the Leipzig incident. Iran is announcing a new exclusion zone near the Strait of Hormuz. At the same time, the U.S. tourism industry is still fighting to win Canadian visitors back, while the MAGA merchandise boom is visibly collapsing.

AfD Wins Saxony-Anhalt With 43.8 Percent - CDU Crashes to 17.2 Percent

The AfD has clearly won the state election in Saxony-Anhalt and reaches 43.8 percent according to the preliminary official final result. That makes it the strongest party in the state for the first time and gives it a gain of 23 percentage points compared with 2021. The CDU falls to 17.2 percent and loses 19.9 points. Five years ago, it was still at 37.1 percent and had clearly won the election. Within a single election cycle, the balance of power has practically flipped. The SPD comes in at 9.3 percent, the Greens at 8.9 percent, and the Left at 8.6 percent. The BSW makes it into the state parliament with 5.3 percent. The FDP is clearly out with 2.6 percent.

Despite the huge lead, the result does not automatically give the AfD a government of its own. What matters is the distribution of seats, and the BSW making it into parliament means that more votes are included in the allocation of mandates. AfD lead candidate Ulrich Siegmund had said before the election that he would only seek the office of minister-president if his party won an absolute majority of seats and could form a government without coalition partners. The CDU, SPD, Greens, and Left all reject a coalition with the AfD. The BSW, by contrast, has not categorically ruled out cooperation on individual issues.

The result goes far beyond a normal change of government. The AfD state branch has been classified by Saxony-Anhalt’s domestic intelligence agency as confirmed right-wing extremist since 2023. At the same time, an AfD-led state government would gain influence over the police, permits, and parts of the regional infrastructure. That also includes areas that matter for military transport through Germany. Saxony-Anhalt lies on routes that could be used to move NATO forces toward Eastern Europe in an emergency.

Voter turnout was higher than it has been in decades. The AfD more than doubled its result from 20.8 percent in 2021 to 43.8 percent, while the CDU lost almost half of the support it had back then. The preliminary official final result was published early on the morning of September 7. Saxony-Anhalt now enters a government-forming process where a lot is mathematically possible, but almost every option is politically difficult. A more detailed review of the election in Saxony-Anhalt will follow this evening. Beyond simply looking at the numbers, we want to examine the political consequences, the reasons behind the result, and the possible effects more closely and with journalistic care.

Trump Goes Back to the Supreme Court to Restrict Mail Voting Ahead of the Midterms

The Trump administration is once again trying to impose stricter rules on mail voting shortly before the midterm elections. On Sunday, it went back to the Supreme Court and asked the justices to lift a court order blocking Trump’s directive. The problem for the administration is that several states have already started sending out mail ballots. North Carolina has already begun, Alabama follows on September 9, and several more states will start a few days later. The Justice Department argues that every additional day without the new rules could create more confusion. At the same time, the clock is getting tighter because there are fewer than two months left until the election.

This is already the third time the administration has brought the issue to the Supreme Court. The court has not permanently stopped Trump’s plan so far, but it also has not yet ruled on whether the new rules are even legal. A federal judge had previously ordered the U.S. Postal Service not to enforce the requirements for the time being. Democratic-led states, voting rights groups, and election officials consider the changes unconstitutional and warn that many eligible voters could lose their vote if the rules are changed this late. A huge share of the electorate is affected. Nearly one in three U.S. voters casts a ballot by mail. The Trump administration argues that the new requirements are common-sense postal rules and fall within its authority. At the same time, it stresses that states will still decide who is allowed to vote by mail and which ballots are counted. The Postal Service, it says, will not decide voter eligibility, maintain voter rolls, or count ballots.

The ACLU strongly disagrees. It says there is no evidence that the states could still implement the new requirements in time without disadvantaging eligible voters. Trump has been trying to restrict mail voting for years, even though he has repeatedly voted by mail himself. His claim that mail voting caused his 2020 defeat was never proven. Now the Supreme Court is once again deciding how far the administration can go in changing existing election procedures just weeks before a nationwide election.

Germany Expands Drone Defenses - Mobile Units and a “Cyber Dome” Planned After Leipzig Attack

Germany wants to significantly expand its defenses against drones, sabotage, and attacks on computer networks. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt is planning mobile Federal Police units that would be stationed in Frankfurt, Munich, Hamburg, Berlin, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf, Leipzig, Hanover, and Cologne, equipped with helicopters and specialized vehicles. They are supposed to protect airports, train stations, major transport routes, and Berlin’s government district. The units are not only supposed to intercept drones, but also defuse explosives attached to them. Operators of critical infrastructure are also supposed to get more authority to act on their own in the future. Water utilities, energy companies, and defense plants would be allowed to detect drones and actively defend themselves against attacks. Dobrindt now says Russian attacks have become part of everyday reality - with drones, agents, break-ins into computer networks, and sabotage against infrastructure. The federal government also wants to expand facial recognition, video surveillance, and automated analysis, for example at train stations. Systems are supposed to detect suspicious behavior, weapons, and possible preparations for attacks earlier. A national system called “Cyberdome” is planned to counter cyberattacks, a kind of digital sensor network for government and private computer systems.

The trigger for the new measures was the incident at Leipzig/Halle Airport in early August. A drone with a detonator was found near a Ukrainian An-124 transport aircraft. The airport had to temporarily shut down operations. A diverted cargo plane later collided with an unknown object in the Leipzig area and landed with damage to the front of the aircraft. Investigators then identified two suspected participants, a man born in Russia with a Latvian passport and a man born in Belarus with a Russian passport. DNA traces from the second man were found on a drone, on a container with explosives, and on an antenna near the airport.

At the beginning of September, the German government officially blamed Russia for the attempted attack. Berlin then announced the closure of the Russian consulate general in Bonn, the end of the agreement governing the “Russian House” in Berlin, and stricter entry controls for Russian citizens. Moscow rejects the accusations and calls the incident a provocation. At the same time, Baltic Sea states want to create a joint task force against drones and other attacks on critical infrastructure. After incidents involving airports, cables, and pipelines, information is supposed to be shared much faster in the future.

Iran Announces New Exclusion Zone Near Strait of Hormuz - Every Identified Tanker Could End Up on Sanctions List

Iran plans to announce a new exclusion zone near the Strait of Hormuz in the coming days and weeks. The new head of the Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezaei, said on state television that the zone would begin at the line of the U.S. naval blockade, extend toward the Strait of Hormuz, and continue from there into the Persian Gulf. Any ship entering the area that Iran believes intends to pass through the strait would be identified and placed on an Iranian sanctions list. Rezaei did not say exactly where the zone would run. It is also unclear what line Iran considers to be the boundary of the U.S. blockade that has been in place for weeks.

The announcement comes one day after another heavy exchange of attacks. The United States struck three Iranian oil tankers after Iran fired ballistic missiles at American warships. Washington now has more than 20 warships supporting the blockade of Iranian ports. According to the U.S. military, 92 commercial ships have been rerouted so far and three others disabled. Iran, meanwhile, continues to attack individual ships trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. On Sunday, Tehran also claimed it had struck an unmanned American vessel. The U.S. military dismissed that claim as a “total lie.”

Fighting between the United States and Iran intensified again last week after roughly a month of relative calm. At least five people were killed in new U.S. strikes in southern Iran. At the same time, Washington is increasing economic pressure on Tehran and going after foreign financial institutions that handle Iranian business. Negotiations between the two sides have collapsed. An agreement signed in June lasted only a few days before Washington and Tehran accused each other of violations. Rezaei now says Iran will only continue talks with guarantees and has also lost trust in mediators such as Pakistan, Qatar, and Oman.

For the global economy, the Strait of Hormuz remains one of the most dangerous points in the war. U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Sunday that an average of around nine million barrels of oil a day are currently passing through the strait. Together with regional pipelines, that would put oil flows at around two-thirds or more of prewar levels. According to Wright, that is possible mainly because of protection from U.S. warships. Iran, meanwhile, claims it is still selling between one and one and a half million barrels of its own oil every day. If Tehran actually enforces its announced exclusion zone, the fight over who controls access to the Strait of Hormuz could hit commercial shipping and international oil supplies even more directly.

U.S. Tourism Industry Fights to Win Canadians Back - Trump’s Trade War Keeps Driving Many Away

American tourism groups are now aggressively trying to win Canadian visitors back. States, cities, and tourist destinations are running campaigns, offering discounts, and using direct messages to show Canadians that they are still welcome. New York is running its “NY Loves Canada” campaign, some hotels in Las Vegas are temporarily treating the Canadian dollar as equal to the U.S. dollar, and tourism officials from Nevada traveled to Canada specifically to meet with travel agencies, tour operators, and airlines. The effort is also happening at the national level: Brand USA is bringing its major travel event to Canada for the first time in October. The reason is obvious. Since Trump returned to the White House, the number of Canadians traveling to the United States has dropped sharply. His repeated statements that Canada should become the 51st state and the escalating trade dispute have angered many Canadians. In 2025, Canadian residents made 25 percent fewer return border crossings, while their travel spending in the U.S. dropped by around $2.4 billion. On top of that, the Canadian dollar is weaker, flights are more expensive, and hotel prices are higher. The numbers also show, however, that the decline started before Trump’s second term. Air travel from Canada to the U.S. has been falling since September 2023.

There were some signs of improvement in spring and summer 2026, partly because of the World Cup hosted jointly by the United States, Canada, and Mexico. But the next setback came immediately afterward: Trump announced new tariffs on Canadian goods after trade talks collapsed. Washington now imposes tariffs of up to 50 percent on various products, and Canada has responded with measures of its own. Trump also ordered Lake Ontario to be officially renamed “Lake America.” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney responded sharply to attacks from members of Trump’s cabinet, calling them childish and undignified.

For many Canadians, a cheap vacation is no longer enough. Families who used to travel regularly to California, Oregon, or Washington are now going to Mexico instead. Others even refuse to book flights with layovers at U.S. airports. The coming winter will be especially important. Florida, Arizona, and California have traditionally depended heavily on long-stay Canadian visitors. Florida already lost seven percent of its Canadian visitors in 2025, while California lost around 20 percent. The U.S. tourism industry is trying to win those travelers back, but as long as the political conflict keeps escalating, the deciding question for many Canadians is unlikely to be the price. It will be whether they want to spend their money in the United States at all.

The MAGA Boom Is Collapsing - Trump Stores Lose Customers, Retailers Get Stuck With Merchandise

Donald Trump still has fans, but they are buying a lot less. In Boones Mill, Virginia, the Trump Town USA store made as much as $15,000 a day during the 2024 election year. Today, according to the owner, it often brings in only around $1,500 a day. He mainly blames the weak economy, high gas prices caused by the Iran war, and persistent inflation. Many customers also feel they already did their part by helping Trump win reelection. Buying the next hat or T-shirt simply is not very high on the list anymore.

Other retailers are saying the same thing. A Trump store in Manchester, Tennessee, has now shut down completely. Even steep discounts in the final days failed to bring in many customers. Suppliers are ordering less Trump merchandise and deliberately letting their inventories run low. A wholesaler in Washington says openly that politics does not matter to him, only demand does. And demand is down. Especially bitter for the movement: a significant share of Trump merchandise is still made in China. A sales representative in New York says demand began falling slowly after Trump’s reelection and then dropped sharply about six months ago, shortly after the Iran war began. Her phone used to ring constantly. Today, retailers contact her far less often. Many customers now have to decide whether to buy a toy for their child or another MAGA hat. In better times, they bought both. Today, the toy usually wins.

The business has not disappeared completely. A Trump store in Branson, Missouri, is still doing well and brought in seven figures in revenue last year. Its owner thinks other retailers are simply bad at business. But even in deeply Republican areas, the decline is visible. Trump Town USA is located in a county where Trump won more than 70 percent of the vote in 2024. The owner remains a committed supporter and is now leaning more heavily into America 250 merchandise and Confederate items. His hopes are focused on January 20, 2029. That is when he believes nostalgia will bring MAGA supporters back into the stores in large numbers. Until then, the retail business is showing pretty clearly that political enthusiasm eventually ends at the cash register.