Conservative Christian Democrats Set to Win German Election, Right-Wing AfD Doubles Support
Germany’s conservative Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) are set to win the biggest vote share in Sunday’s general election, followed by the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) which doubled its support from 11 percent in 2021 to around 20 percent, early projections show.
“The exit polls of the 2025 German election are in, showing the center-right Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) winning the highest percentage of seats with 29%,” the German state TV Deutsche Welle reported.
“The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) were the runners-up with just under 20%. Coming in third were the ruling center-left Social Democrats (SPD) with 16% just edging their current coalition partners, the Greens, on 13.5%,” the broadcaster added.
With poll results still pouring in, outgoing German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) admitted defeat while CDU chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz declared himself the winner.
The Euronews TV channel reports:
At the centre-right CDU’s Konrad-Adenauer-Haus election HQ, chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz acknowledged his party’s lead.”We, the Union – the CDU and CSU – we have won this federal election,” Merz said, adding that he’s “aware of the responsibility that now lies ahead of me.”Merz emphasised that it was now the party’s responsibility to form a new government swiftly. “The world out there is not waiting for us,” he stated.Olaf Scholz’s centre-left SPD was one of tonight’s main losers. He described the results as “bitter” and acknowledged his defeat. “The polls didn’t improve, but we fought until the end,” Scholz said, taking responsibility for the election outcome.SPD Secretary General Matthias Miersch also called it a “bitter evening” for the party, admitting that “this is a historic defeat for the SPD.”
Primarily results suggest that the conservative CDU/CSU can form a majority government with the support of the AfD, a move shunned by all mainstream parties under the concept of so-called Brandmauer, or firewall, against the right-wing party.
A likely coalition emerging from this electoral outcome would be between the Conservatives and the Social Democrats (SPD), with the far-left Greens entering the government as well. Both SPD and Greens are against tougher measures to end mass immigration.
Germany was faced with an early election after the left-wing Social Democrat-led coalition collapsed hours after the news of President Donald Trump winning the White House.
[Disclaimer: Author is a member of the CDU party]
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