German election: Projections say CDU/CSU leads with 29% – DW (English)

Germany’s electoral authority declared the CDU/CSU conservative bloc as the winner in preliminary results. Conservative leader Friedrich Merz urged Europe to distance itself from the US. CDU/CSU candidate Merz slams Trump and Musk, says Europe needs independenceThis blog has now closed. Click here to follow DW’s live coverage of the aftermath of the German election as coalition talks begin.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.Here are the latest projections of German election results, updated in real time.  To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 videoBerlin Culture Minister Joe Chialo of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) said that Germans were “hungry” for a functioning government in comments to DW.The CDU under Friedrich Merz has won Germany’s general election, according to early results after vote counting ended.Friedrich Merz’s CDU/CSU conservative alliance has won Germany’s general election with 28.6% of the vote, according to early results after vote counting concluded.At second place was the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), which doubled its share of the vote, winning 20.8%.Preliminary results showed that outgoing chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats (SPD) received 16.4% in a historic low for the party.The SPD’s junior coalition partner, the environmentalist Greens, also saw a drop in support, netting 11.6%.The pro-business Free Democrats (FDP), who left Scholz’s coalition in November, received 4.3% of the vote, meaning the party failed to pass the minimum threshold to enter parliament.The socialist Left Party jumped up to 8.8% of the vote in the preliminary tally.To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 videoMarie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, a member of the EU parliament for the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP), told DW that a “long night” was ahead of the party as it waited to see whether it would manage to enter the Bundestag.Preliminary results show the FDP at 4.3% of the vote, which put it under the 5% minimum threshold for representation in parliament.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.To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 videoCDU leader Friedrich Merz is likely to become Germany’s next chancellor after his party become the largest in parliament, according to preliminary results.He warned against holding “long drawn-out coalition negotiations” before a new government is formed.The left-wing populist Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) has not achieved representation in the Bundestag, according to preliminary results.The BSW received 4,972% of the vote, putting it narrowly beneath the 5% minimum threshold required to enter parliament.2025 is the party’s first general election as it split from the socialist Left Party early last year.The pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) also failed to pass the 5% threshold after netting a preliminary result of 4.3%.With fewer parties entering the Bundestag, larger parties will receive more seats, meaning that the conservative CDU/CSU alliance and the center-left SPD can now form a two-party coalition without further support from other groups such as the Greens.To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 videoAfD co-chairman Tino Chrupalla hailed his party’s election result in comments to DW, noting that it had become the second-largest force in parliament.He argued that the result showed that German voters were against a consensus among parties against cooperating with the AfD, known as the “firewall.”In the run-up to the general election, Germany’s ambassador to the United Kingdom, Miguel Berger, said he had not received a mail-in ballot and called for a reform of German bureaucracy.”No [election] documents arrived at my place in London!” he said in a post on the platform X.”In the [Bundestag election], many Germans living abroad will not be able to exercise their right to vote,” he added.Berger said that the deadlines were made to be too strict and criticized what he described as procedures that were “too bureaucratic.””Reform is urgently needed,” he concluded.No, Green Party leader Felix Banaszak doesn’t have time for an interview in front of the DW camera right now. But then he stops briefly and speaks with DW — he doesn’t want to give a grade for his party’s election result: “We have been in a very difficult government, the most unpopular this country has ever had. We worked our way out of the slump after the summer, but not as far as we wanted.””But in the end, it is a sign that many people in this country want politics in which climate protection plays a role, with which Germany remains an open country and in which there is justice,” he said.The Greens are projected to net 11.7% of the vote, down three points from 2021’s election, after which they entered into coalition as a junior partner alongside outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s SPD and the pro-business FDP.The coalition government suffered from regular public squabbles and ultimately fell apart in November after Scholz dismissed former Finance Minister Christian Lindner of the FDP.Like many here at the Greens’ election party, the 35-year-old party leader, who has only been at the helm since last November, feels that it is unlikely the Greens will be needed to form a government under Friedrich Merz of the CDU, who is the most probable candidate to become Germany’s next chancellor.But Banaszak does not want to give up hope: “If there is a constellation in which the Greens are needed, then we will enter the negotiations with confidence.” Banaszak’s conclusion of the short election campaign is rather sobering: “The election campaign was somewhat detached from reality in parts. Germany and Europe find themselves in a completely new situation.” In other words, not being able to govern now hurts.Banaszak argued that the CDU bringing a motion on migration through the Bundestag with the help of votes from the far-right AfD probably also ultimately scared off some potential Green voters.”Many people who could imagine voting for the Greens apparently found the idea that Friedrich Merz would become chancellor quite terrible,” he said.CDU leader Friedrich Merz is set to become Germany’s next chancellor based on projected results of Germany’s general election.DW takes a closer look at Merz’s political career, including a 12-year hiatus in the business world.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.At the Greens’ election night party in Berlin-Kreuzberg, almost everyone was glued to the post-election panels on TV, watching a defeated Chancellor Olaf Scholz from the SPD and his likely successor, CDU leader Friedrich Merz.The latest projections were running across the screen below, and it is still unclear whether the the pro-business FDP and the left-wing populist BSW will make it into the Bundestag.Whether or not the two parties secure representation in parliament could determine what coalition options are available to the CDU, including whether the Greens might still be needed as a governing party.The leader of the Greens in the Bundestag, Britta Haßelmann, told DW that the Greens are now more of a governing party than an opposition party: “We must be able to be ready for dialogue, to be capable of forming alliances,” she said. “But we must first wait and see what this means. That makes this election evening different from many others we have experienced.”Haßelmann said she believed that the issue of migration was the overriding one in the election campaign and that she fet the CDU relying on votes from the AfD to pass a motion in the Bundestag last month changed everything.”That breached a taboo, as made clear by the many thousands of people who took to the streets in protest. They were worried about freedom and the rule of law,” she told DW, arguing that the move diminished trust in political parties.At a Left Party event on the night of the Bundestag election, senior politician Gregor Gysi took to the stage amid deafening applause.Barring a short hiatus, the 77-year-old has been in parliament since 1990. He is the longest-serving lawmaker in the Bundestag, having been a member of the German parliament for over 30 years running.That means as the “Father of the House,” he will make the opening speech when the new parliament meets for the first time. Gysi alone will get to decide the contents of that speech — and that’s something we can look forward to, as the Berlin-native has a reputation as one of the best orators in parliament.The Left Party had hoped to use the popularity of Gysi and two other lawmakers to win enough direct votes from constituencies to enter the Bundestag without having to pass the 5% minimum threshold to secure representation. The party later surged in support in the run-up to the election and ultimately won some 8.5% of the vote, according to projections.

Source: https://www.dw.com/en/german-election-friedrich-merz-urges-independence-from-us/live-71700729