The Christian Democratic Union (CDU) led by Friedrich Merz won the early parliamentary elections in Germany — votes have already been counted in all 299 districts.
This was reported by the Federal Election Commission.
Turnout in this yearʼs parliamentary elections reached 84%, a record in Germany since 1990.
According to the final results, CDU received 28.5% of the vote. The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), led by Alice Weidel, came in second with 20.8%, the partyʼs best election result in history.
The Social Democratic Party of Germany, led by current Chancellor Olaf Scholz, came in third. It received 16.4% of the vote, a third less than in 2021. This is the partyʼs worst result since World War II.
The Greens and the Left Party will also enter the Bundestag — they were voted for by 11.6% and 8.8% of voters, respectively.
The "Sarah Wagenknecht Union for Reason and Justice" and the Free Democratic Party failed to overcome the 5% barrier and did not enter the German parliament.
Whatʼs next?
There are a total of 630 seats in the German parliament — according to the election results, CDU will receive 208 seats, AfD — 151, SPD — 121, the Greens — 85, and the Left Party — 64. The last seat will be received by a non-party deputy.
The Christian Democratic Union needs to form a coalition with another party to have a majority of votes and the opportunity to form a government.
Even before the official results were announced, when the CDU victory became obvious, Merz stressed that the conservatives would do everything possible to form a functioning government as quickly as possible. Merz said he planned to form a new federal government by Easter, April 20.
It is not yet known with which party they will form a coalition. But Merz has previously said that he will not cooperate with the far right. He does not want to unite with the Social Democrats led by Olaf Scholz. The most likely is a coalition with the Greens, but their views on solving the migrant problem differ significantly. More about this here.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky congratulated leader Frederik Merz on his victory in the elections.
"We look forward to continuing our joint work with Germany to protect lives and bring real peace to Ukraine, as well as to strengthen Europe," he wrote.
US leader Donald Trump also joined the congratulations — he wrote that the results of the elections in Germany can be explained by "Germansʼ fatigue with politics without common sense".
What is the position of the future German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Ukraine?
During the full-scale invasion, Merz visited Ukraine several times and met with Volodymyr Zelensky. He supports the provision of both humanitarian and military aid, but is not ready to talk about security guarantees or German peacekeepers. The main difference from the current government is that Merz wants to allow the supply of Taurus
Merz emphasizes that Ukraine should be allowed to strike targets on Russian territory with German weapons, because now “we are allowing Ukraine to fight with one hand tied behind its back”. According to him, Ukraine has the prospect of becoming an EU member, and its path to NATO is “irreversible”. As for the US, Merz promises tougher relations with the new administration. He especially wants to complain to Trump about Elon Musk, who publicly supported the Alternative for Germany.
“That’s why everyone is paying attention to Germany right now. How quickly will the Germans be able to form a government after such a difficult election result? For me, this is really a priority right now,” he wrote on election day in Germany, February 23.
What preceded the early elections in Germany
In early November 2023, Scholz dismissed Finance Minister Christian Lindner, accusing him of irresponsibility, selfishness, and acting only in the interests of his Free Democratic Party—one of three in the governmentʼs governing coalition. Lindner reported that the Free Democrats were leaving the coalition and taking all of their ministers with them.
Scholz made the decision due to differences with Lindner on budgetary, financial and economic policy. German media reported that the three-party coalition could not decide what to do with the 2025 budget.
This led to a political crisis in Germany, which eventually led to early elections. President Frank-Walter Steinmeier called the elections for February 23.
For more news and in-depth stories from Ukraine please follow us on X.