The far-right AfD and the Left jointly secured the one third of seats needed to block constitutional changes. Both oppose military aid to Ukraine.

Provisional results confirmed that mainstream conservatives led by Friedrich Merz won Germany's national election​, while far-right party AfD surged to become the nation's second-largest.

On 23 February, Germany will vote to decide who will run their next federal government. There’s five candidates running to be chancellor – the frontrunner is Friedrich Mertz from the Christian Democrat party. In Germany, a single party rarely wins the majority of seats in the Bundestag, meaning coalition governments often form.

Germany faces its second change of leader in less than four years after the head of the center-right opposition won Sunday’s election

Friedrich Merz is on course to become post-World War II Germany’s 10th chancellor, the culmination of a yearslong political career that was once sidelined by his party’s iconic leader

Friedrich Merz, on course to become post-World War II Germany's 10th chancellor after the country's election, has vowed to prioritize European unity and the continent's security as it grapples with the new Trump administration and Russia's war on Ukraine.

While polling suggests Germany's far-right AfD party will fare well, it's very unlikely to be part of the next government of Europe's biggest economy.