Friedrich Merz’s CDU/CSU conservative alliance has won the general election with 28.6% of the vote, according to preliminary results
announced by Germany’s federal electoral body.
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) secured 20.8% of the vote, which is the party’s strongest result to date at the federal level.
Outgoing chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats’ (SPD) share of the vote dropped to 16.4%, putting them at third place.
The SPD’s junior coalition partner, the environmentalist Greens, won 11.6%.
The pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) netted only 4.3%, meaning that it will not enter the Bundestag as it did not pass the 5% threshold for representation in parliament. The same goes for the left-wing populist Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW), which got 4.97%.
The socialist Left Party achieved 8.8% of the vote.
CDU leader Friedrich Merz, who is likely to become Germany’s next chancellor, won his own constituency in the general election.
He won 47.7% of the votes in the electoral district of Hochsauerland in the western state of North-Rhein Westphalia, well ahead of SPD challenger Dirk Wiese, who received 21.4%.
Under Germany’s electoral system, voters cast a vote for a candidate in their local constituency and a separate vote for a party list.
Meanwhile, outgoing chancellor Olaf Scholz of the SPD also won his own district in the city of Potsdam, just southwest of Berlin.
Scholz secured 21.8% of the vote, narrowly defeating CDU candidate Tabea Gutschmidt, who received 20.6%, as well as Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock of the Greens, who netted 15.9%.
Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck of the Greens also failed to secure his seat in Flensburg in the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein and was defeated by CDU candidate Petra Nicolaisen.
AfD leader Alice Weidel did not win her Lake Constance district in the southern state of Baden-Württemberg.
Baerbock, Habeck and Weidel are still guaranteed to win seats in the Bundestag via party lists.
French President Emmanuel Macron congratulated Friedrich Merz on the election result, stressing his determination to work for a “strong, sovereign Europe.”
“In this period of uncertainty, we are united to face the great challenges of the world and our continent,” Macron said.UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer also congratulated Merz.
“I look forward to working with the new government to deepen our already strong relationship, enhance our joint security and deliver growth for both our countries,” he said.
- The results mean Merz could form a so-called “grand coalition” with the SPD, without needing to find a third party. That would mean a future government would be more stable and less fractious than for example Scholz’s.
- The Social Democratic party was left reeling on the back of a historically low vote share, with outgoing chancellor, Olaf Scholz, admitting it was a “bitter result”.He said he would not be involved in any coalition talks with the CDU/CSU, with other SPD leaders expected to lead.
- Merz hailed “a historic election evening,” and acknowledged the responsibility and the scale of the task ahead. He said he planned to form a coalition by Easter and told party faithful that “the world out there is not waiting for us and for lengthy negotiations.”
- Speaking on a post-election panel of party leaders Merz also acknowledged the foreign policy challenges ahead. “After Donald Trump’s statements last week, it’s clear: this American government doesn’t care for Europe,” he said. “We need to see whether we don’t need to become more quickly independent in Europe in terms of our defence capabilities,” he added.
- Alice Weidel, co-leader of the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) called the result “historic” for her party, having doubled the number of votes from 2021. Weidel said her party remained open to coalition talks with other parties, and said excluding the AfD was the equivalent to “voter fraud”.
- The AfD swept all five former East German states: Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Saxony and Thuringia. It won well over 30% of the vote in each state and as much as 38.6% in Thuringia – that’s where the AfD made history in September as the first far-right party to win a state election since the second world war.
- Christian Lindner, the leader of the liberal FDP whose falling out with Scholz triggered the collapse of his coalition government and paved the way for early elections, resigned after his party failed to reach the 5% threshold to re-enter parliament. In a post on X, he said would retire from active politics and said he hoped the election would bring a “new start for Germany”.
Source: DW