Germans start voting, polls suggest shift to right

23/2/2025 16:45

Germans were voting in a national election on Sunday that is expected to restore power to Friedrich Merz's conservatives while the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is forecast to achieve its best result yet in Europe's ailing economic powerhouse.



Merz's CDU/CSU bloc has consistently led polls but is unlikely to win a majority given Germany's fragmented political landscape, forcing it to sound out coalition partners.



Those negotiations are expected to be tricky after a campaign that exposed sharp divisions over migration and how to deal with the AfD in a country where far-right politics carries a particularly strong stigma because of its Nazi past.



That could leave unpopular Chancellor Olaf Scholz in a caretaker role for months, delaying urgently needed policies to revive Europe's largest economy after two consecutive years of contraction and as companies struggle against global rivals.



It would also create a leadership vacuum in the heart of Europe even as it deals with a host of challenges, including U.S. President Donald Trump's threats of a trade war and attempts to fast-track a ceasefire deal for Ukraine without European involvement.