Conservatives win German election but far-right AfD doubles support

<p>Preliminary results show CDU/CSU will be largest party but success of Alternative für Deutschland likely to complicate formation of a government</p><ul><li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/feb/23/german-election-live-olaf-scholz-alice-weidel-afd-friedrich-merz-germany-latest-news">German election – latest updates</a></li></ul><p>The conservative opposition has won the most votes in Germany’s general election, preliminary results indicated, but a dramatic surge by the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) is likely to complicate the formation of a government to help spearhead a European response to growing global threats.</p><p>The CDU/CSU candidate, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/dec/10/who-is-friedrich-merz-germany-next-chancellor-scholz-merkel">Friedrich Merz</a>, was preparing on Sunday night to try to form a ruling coalition after clinching roughly 29% of the vote from a high turnout.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/feb/23/conservatives-poised-to-win-german-election-but-far-right-afd-doubles-support">Continue reading...</a>