German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has conceded defeat as the CDU/CSU secures victory in Germanys national election. The right-wing AfD made history by finishing second with 20.4% of the vote, marking its strongest national result ever.

CDU's Friedrich Merz has claimed victory while SPD's Olaf Scholz has regretted the "bitter" election result. The German electoral authority confirmed the CDU's win in preliminary results, followed by the far-right AfD.

Election winner Friedrich Merz's conservatives and the Social Democrats (SPD) have taken a major step toward forming a coalition government, the heads of the parties said.

Germany needs a new government fast. The center-right and center-left are set to hammer out an agreement by Easter, but there are several sticking points.

scores its best-ever result and Chancellor Olaf Scholz's party collapses. The leader of the CDU/CSU bloc, Friedrich Merz, who will most likely become Germany's next chancellor, said he would work on forming a government as soon as possible, though it is ...

Friedrich Merz aims to swiftly form government after his conservative bloc's February 23 election win. SPD leader Lars Klingbeil stressed a coalition with the CDU/CSU was "not automatic" amid key policy disagreements.

With Friedrich Merz's CDU/CSU union coming on top of the election, coalition talks will come next. Merz seemed keen to get to work right away, saying that "the world isn't waiting for us." Follow DW f

The head of the centre-right CDU/CSU alliance, Friedrich Merz ... His bloc and the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) of outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz will each send a nine-member team to the talks, party sources told AFP. Merz, 69, has set a deadline ...

Friedrich Merz, Germany's likely next chancellor, said he wants a defense aid package for Ukraine worth roughly 3 billion euros ($3.2 billion) approved by the current, outgoing parliament, Le Monde and AFP reported on March 4.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's disastrous meeting in the White House on Friday has left Germany in a state of shock. Likely government partners CDU/CSU and SPD want to invest billions in defense.

Germany held early elections to the Bundestag. The winner of this election cycle was the conservative CDU/CSU alliance, while other parties received fewer votes or even failed to make it, German media reported.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz concedes defeat as CDU/CSU wins Germany's election, with AfD achieving historic second place. Key implications for future governance.- Watch Video on English Oneindia