German opposition leader Friedrich Merz has declared victory after projections showed his Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) winning 28.5 percent of the vote in federal election, securing a clear lead over other parties.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz conceded defeat for his center-left Social Democrats after what he called "a bitter election result." Projections for ARD and ZDF public television showed his party finishing in third place with its worst postwar result in a national parliamentary election.
"One thing is clear: the Union has won the election," said Carsten Linnemann, the general secretary of Merz’s Christian Democratic Union party. "The new chancellor will be called Friedrich Merz."
Meanwhile, the Alternative for Germany, or AfD, has become the second-most powerful political force in the country. The far-right party polled 20.6 percent, roughly doubling its result from 2021.
Although headed for victory, Merz's conservatives fell short of the absolute majority required to govern alone. Whether they will need one or two partners to form a coalition government will depend on how many parties get into parliament.
Ukraine, Europe and US
German exit polls are supplemented with pre-election polling to represent people voting by absentee ballot.
The election was dominated by worries about the years-long stagnation of Europe's biggest economy and pressure to curb migration.
It took place against a background of growing uncertainty over the future of Ukraine and Europe's alliance with the United States.
Germany is the most populous country in the 27-nation European Union and a leading member of NATO.
It has been Ukraine's second-biggest weapons supplier after the US. It will be central to shaping the continent's response to the challenges of the coming years, including the Trump administration's confrontational foreign and trade policy.
➤Click here to follow our WhatsApp channel for more stories.
