The conservatives of Merz celebrate, on the right enjoy the record result

The conservatives of Friedrich Merz have won the elections of Germany, far ahead of the rival parties, but below 30% of the votes they expected.

“Let’s celebrate tonight and in the morning we will get to work,” Cheering followers told. He said he was “aware of the responsibility that awaits him now.”

The other winner was the extreme right alternative for Germany (AFD), which celebrates a record result of the second place of 20.8%.

The AFD candidate for Chancellor, Alice Weidel, made a victory of her followers, but even her party had waited a major result and the mood at the AFD headquarters was subjected.

As the results arrived during the early hours of Monday, it was clear that the AFD was far ahead of the other parts in the east, with 34% projected according to a survey for the ZDF public broadcaster.

“The Germans have voted for change,” said Alice Weidel. She said that Friedrich’s attempt to forge a coalition would finally end in failure: “We will have new elections, I don’t think we have to wait another four years.”

But just when the electoral map became light blue in the east, much of the rest of Germany became black, the color of the CDU.

After the collapse of the coalition of three parts of Olaf Scholz at the end of last year, Merz had asked the electorate for a strong mandate to form a clear coalition with another party.

That would allow him to solve as many problems from Germany as he could in four years, he said, from a stagnant economy to close its borders to irregular migrants.

German voters had other ideas. They left in large quantities, with an 83% participation not seen before reunification in 1990, but Merz’s Christian Democrats had been looking for more than 28.6% of the votes they received and their sister Bavara party.

Merz has ruled out working with the AFD. There is a taboo or “Firewall” that prevents conventional parties in Germany from operating with the end right.

But their most likely partner, social democrats, have suffered their worst result with 16.4%.

Its leader, outgoing Foreign Minister Olaf Scholz, said the results of the elections were a bitter defeat for the party, and that he would not participate in negotiations for a coalition.

Due to the relatively mediocre yield of the CDU, initially there was any doubt that two parties would be enough for a coalition.

Germany has just spent four years of a three -part coalition and the only other realistic partner was the Greens, whose leader, Robert Habeck, Merz had ridiculed as a “representative of the heat pumps” on the eve of the vote.

Merz, 69, has never had a ministerial work, but has promised if he becomes the next German chancellor to show leadership in Europe and strengthen support for Ukraine.

Most Germans have been shocked by the open support that billionaire Elon Musk and the vice president of the United States, JD Vance, have given an alternative for Germany in the elections. Vance was accused of enduring the vote during a visit to Munich, while Elon Musk made repeated comments on his platform X.

Alice Weidel and her party there is no damage at all, since the AFD enjoyed an increase in support of 10 points four years ago. But it also benefited from a successful Tiktok campaign, which attracted a large number of young voters.

However, President Donald Trump welcomed Merz’s victory. He said it was proof that the Germans were, like Americans, tired of “the agenda of non -common sense, especially in energy and immigration.”

If it was an overture, Merz did not take it as one. He told a round television table on Sunday night that it had been clear in last week that the Trump administration was “largely indifferent to the destination of Europe.”

Trump has strangely described Volodymyr Zelensky from Ukraine as a “dictator” and seemed to accuse kyiv of starting the war, which Russia unleashed his neighbor exactly three years ago.

Merz said that his “absolute priority” would be “to strengthen Europe as quickly as possible so that we can achieve real independence from the United States step by step.”

Merz’s victory was quickly welcomed in much of Europe. Emmanuel Macron de France talked about joining in a moment of uncertainty to “face the main challenges of the world and our continent”, while the United Kingdom Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer sought to “improve our joint security and offer growth for our countries “

The Christian Democrats of Friedrich Merz continue to depend on the major voters for their success, while the voters between 18 and 24 years seem much more interested in the AFD and another party, the left, which emerged in the surveys in the Last weeks.

Not long ago, the left left Parliament with surveys numbers well below the threshold of 5%.

But a series of Tiktok videos showing the co-leader Heidi Reichinnek giving ardent speeches in Parliament became viral and ended up about 9%, and a quarter of the youngest vote, according to an ard survey.