AfD leader in Thuringia Björn Höcke on September 1. (Source: AFP)

On September 1, people in the two eastern German states of Saxony and Thuringia went to the polls in local elections.

German public broadcasters ARD and ZDF have made their forecasts based on exit polls and partial vote counts.

Forecasts show that the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is likely to win in Thuringia with a support rate of between 32.8% and 33.4%. Meanwhile, the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) is predicted to take second place with 23.8%.

The result marks the first time a far-right party has taken the lead in a German state election since World War II, and poses a challenge to Chancellor Olaf Scholz's ruling coalition as the far-right gains ground.

AfD leader in Thuringia Björn Höcke even celebrated his party's anticipated “historic victory”.

In the state of Saxony, where the AfD is also closely following the CDU, the forecast is that the CDU will have a narrow lead, with a vote share of 31.5% to 31.8%, while the AfD is forecast to win between 30.8% and 31.4%.

However, so far no party has said it would agree to a coalition with the AfD, making it difficult for the far-right party to form a government.