Germany: Social Democrats Gain Slight Lead Over Conservatives

In Germany, the first exit polls showed a slight lead by the Social Democrats (SPD) candidate Olaf Scholz over the conservatives Union (CDU/CSU) representative Armin Laschet in the parliamentary elections held on Sunday.

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The ARD public television projected the SPD party with 25.7 percent of the votes, while CDU/CSU coalition secured 24.5 percent. The Green party came third place with 14.3 percent.

Polls forecast that vote loss for the conservative bloc will be almost 8 points while the Social Democrats will gain 4.5 points compared to the last election held in 2017.

At least 60.4 million Germans were called to the polls in a historic election set to replace current Chancellor Angela Merkel. Early estimates indicate that 76 percent of eligible voters cast the ballots, a figure slightly less than the 76.2 percent recorded in 2017.

The Liberals (FDP) with 11.5 percent of the votes, followed by the far-right  Alternative for Germany (AfD) with 10.5 percent, and the Left were in the last positions.

No party can form a government on its own with these figures, so future negotiations will determine the successor of Merkel in the post.

The newly elected Parliament (Bundestag) must meet for the first time no later than 30 days after the election. The Federal Election Committee must now announce the final result and all newly elected lawmakers.