Following exit polls which suggested a conclusive win for Germany's conservative alliance, US President Donald Trump said he supported the outcome, crediting the German people for punishing what he termed as a "no common sense" agenda.
Trump went to his social media platform, Truth Social, to weigh in: "Looks like the Conservative Party of Germany has won the very big and highly disputed election. Much like the USA, the Germans got fed up with the no common sense agenda, particularly on energy and immigration, that has dominated for so many years. This is a great day for Germany."
Germany's right-wing bloc, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Christian Social Union (CSU), were at the forefront of the 2025 federal election, as initial results placed them in the lead. By ARD's latest count, CDU/CSU received 28.5% of the vote, with the Alternative for Germany (AfD) coming second with 20.6%, and the third position going to the Social Democratic Party (SPD) with 16.5%. The Greens polled fourth with 11.8%, beating Die Linke's 8.7%. Free Democratic Party (FDP) and the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) were both forecast to win 4.4% and 4.9%, respectively, according to Xinhua quoting ARD results.
The result of the election will decide the makeup of Germany's next Bundestag, with parties requiring at least 5% of the country's vote to secure parliamentary seats. The turnout was 84%, the highest since 1990. The new parliament will then elect Germany's next chancellor after coalition negotiations.
Friedrich Merz, CDU/CSU's prospective chancellor, sounded optimistic about assembling a new government promptly. "Tonight we are celebrating and tomorrow we begin work," he declared after the elections. "The world outside does not wait for us."
Chancellor Olaf Scholz recognized the SPD's record loss, taking responsibility for the result and ensuring that he would stay in office until a new coalition government is constituted. "It is a bitter election outcome for the Social Democratic Party, it is also an election defeat," said Scholz.
Christian Lindner, who led the FDP for over 11 years, announced his retirement from politics after the election. The FDP had withdrawn from the ruling coalition last year due to disagreements with the SPD.
The AfD made significant gains, nearly doubling its results from the 2021 election. Co-leader Alice Weidel described the performance of the party as a "historically strongest result" and asserted that AfD is now deeply rooted in mainstream society. The party indicated interest in negotiating with CDU/CSU in future coalition talks, yet Merz eliminated any coalition deal with the AfD, something that mirrors Germany's major political factions' historic taboo against negotiations with the party.
Even with the difficulty of establishing a government in these circumstances, Merz said that he was set on having a government established by Easter. As far as foreign policy is concerned, he insisted on gradually strengthening Europe and being more independent from the United States, noting that the Trump administration had been "largely indifferent" to the fate of Europe during his term.
