Germany’s CDU wins election, far-right has best showing since WWII

• The exit polls are in and Germany’s center-right opposition party, led by Friedrich Merz, looks poised to take control of the country with 29% of the vote. Meanwhile, the AfD had the best showing for a far-right party since World War II, with roughly 20% of the vote.
• In response to AfD’s performance, outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz said it is something he would never accept and urged the rest of the country’s parties to not cooperate with the “extreme right”
• Germany’s national election was held seven months ahead of schedule after Scholz’s ruling coalition fell apart over budget and spending negotiations.

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The exit polls are in and Germany’s center-right opposition party, the conservative Christian Democrat Union, led by Friedrich Merz, is poised to become the country’s next ruling party with 29% of the vote. The outgoing chancellor, Olaf Scholz, conceded defeat and said the election Sunday, Feb. 23, had a “bitter result.”

Scholz’s Social Democrats saw their worst election performance since World War II, with just 16% of the vote, according to exit polls. Meanwhile, exit polls suggest that Germany’s far-right AfD will have its strongest showing ever, notching second place and 20% of the vote ––nearly double its vote count following the 2021 election and the best result for a far-right party since World War II.

Following his win, Merz said, “We ran a very tough election campaign. Nevertheless, this election campaign was really necessary, also in the debate about the important and major issues of our country, about economic policy, migration, foreign and security police and internal security. But now we will talk to each other. And the most important thing is to reestablish a viable government in Germany as quickly as possible.”

AfD has best showing for a far-right party since WWII

AfD’s candidate for chancellor and current co-leader, Alice Weidel, celebrated her party’s performance, saying, “This is a historic success for us – our best result ever. We extend our hand to offer cooperation with the CDU. Otherwise, change won’t be possible in Germany.”

In response to AfD’s strong finish, Scholz said “an extreme right-wing party like the AfD is getting such election results. That must never be something that we will accept. I will not accept it and never will.” He added, “No cooperation with the extreme right.”

The AfD, which was endorsed this election cycle by two fixtures of the Trump administration, Vice President JD Vance and billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk, rode a wave of anti-immigrant sentiment, as well as concerns about violent crime and high energy costs. The party is currently being monitored by the nation’s security authorities, which suspects it to be an extremist force. Its leaders also believe that Germany should no longer apologize for the Holocaust, with one AfD founder calling the Nazi’s reign “no more than a speck of bird poo in over 1,000 years of successful history.”

Trump calls it a ‘great day for Germany’

Posting to his social media site Truth Social on Sunday, President Donald Trump called the results a “great day for Germany.”

“Looks like the conservative party in Germany has won the very big and highly anticipated election,” Trump wrote in all caps. “Much like the USA, the people of Germany got tired of the no common sense agenda, especially on energy and immigration, that has prevailed for so many years.”

Why was the election held, and how did everyone else fare?

Germany’s national election was held seven months ahead of schedule after Scholz’s ruling coalition –– which included the Social Democrats, Green Party and Free Democratic Party –– fell apart over budget and spending negotiations, triggering a snap election. That happened in November, just hours after President Donald Trump won a second term in the White House.

The Greens finished Sunday with roughly 13.5%, while the far-left Linke had a surprisingly strong showing at 8%. The Free Democrats, meanwhile, might not exceed the requisite 5% threshold to earn parliamentary representation –– something the left-conservative Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance failed to do.

While official election results aren’t expected until early Monday, Feb. 24, the Associated Press has approved the exit polls for reporting, noting, “Unless the result is extremely close, the overall picture is generally clear very early.”