German election stay: Conservatives projected to win and far-right AfD in second | Germany

“}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”abstract”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1740310774000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”06.39 EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1740324551000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”10.29 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1740324112000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”10.21 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”10.21″,”title”:”What’s the voting system?”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Jon Henley”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2016/09/22/Jon-Henley.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=49db88bf6fc8b042c62d52be8afd87ae”,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2017/10/06/Jon_Henley,_L.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=cf23d4c141249ac9dd9f5c331c359f12″}],”primaryDateLine”:”Solar 23 Feb 2025 14.09 EST”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First printed on Solar 23 Feb 2025 06.39 EST”},{“id”:”67bb36b48f08089227381df8″,”parts”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Earlier this weekend, I also spoke with Dr Raphael Bossong of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs for this blog to get his take on the election and ask him to guide us through the vote.

“,”elementId”:”bbdc6a6a-2af3-4dc8-9e55-6f86428bc7bf”},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

You will hear from him more throughout the day, but I started by asking him why Europe should take note of the vote.

“,”elementId”:”2b70b758-0f9f-407e-9a43-e3721feede80″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.BlockquoteBlockElement”,”html”:”

n

Well, it’s a decisive election. I mean, they always say that, but definitely this one is really important for Germany and for Europe at the same time.

n

The tasks for the next government are bigger than ever.

n

“,”elementId”:”a5f23a7e-d049-45ec-8c52-dc07c93831a6″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Watch what he had to say:

“,”elementId”:”377a78cf-ee22-41f1-8666-3364ad185c17″},{“expired”:false,”assetId”:”y_mRJBHCsuU”,”posterImage”:[{“url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/412d74dc0c64461e3f2802a9bbc56447e7e2fa7c/0_0_1920_1080/1000.jpg”,”width”:1000},{“url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/412d74dc0c64461e3f2802a9bbc56447e7e2fa7c/0_0_1920_1080/500.jpg”,”width”:500},{“url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/412d74dc0c64461e3f2802a9bbc56447e7e2fa7c/0_0_1920_1080/140.jpg”,”width”:140},{“url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/412d74dc0c64461e3f2802a9bbc56447e7e2fa7c/0_0_1920_1080/1920.jpg”,”width”:1920}],”id”:”55bb252d-0fd5-4308-8b67-3b07439442a1″,”elementId”:”57b3657d-dbc8-41ec-b142-fe8db23677a6″,”period”:62,”_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.YoutubeBlockElement”,”mediaTitle”:”‘It is a decisive election’: Germans put together to elect new chancellor – video”,”channelId”:”UCIRYBXDze5krPDzAEOxFGVA”}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”abstract”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1740322484000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”09.54 EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1740322800000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”10.00 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1740322801000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”10.00 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”10.00″,”title”:”What’s at stake on this election? – skilled says”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Jakub Krupa”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2025/01/22/Jakub_Krupa.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=41cc9981ec7b067e2d3b5391c5a68a4f”,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2025/01/22/Jakub_Krupa.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=4a039a2b765744058f3c2c677268513e”}],”primaryDateLine”:”Solar 23 Feb 2025 14.09 EST”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First printed on Solar 23 Feb 2025 06.39 EST”},{“id”:”67bb33fb8f08089227381dd4″,”parts”:[{“displayCredit”:true,”_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.ImageBlockElement”,”role”:”inline”,”media”:{“allImages”:[{“index”:0,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”2020″,”width”:”3365″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/3365.jpg”},{“index”:1,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”isMaster”:”true”,”height”:”2020″,”width”:”3365″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg”},{“index”:2,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”1200″,”width”:”2000″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/2000.jpg”},{“index”:3,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”600″,”width”:”1000″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/1000.jpg”},{“index”:4,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”300″,”width”:”500″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/500.jpg”},{“index”:5,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”84″,”width”:”140″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/140.jpg”}]},”elementId”:”14ce02a6-e4fd-4589-9d4f-c103284d61c3″,”imageSources”:[{“weighting”:”inline”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=59b6108668e7078fe2cce40abf23b27b”,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=1ff3eaaeebef080bec20e711fdbdebd3″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=36442ed4c7435de1fa6af87606dbd411″,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3df2ff25bc5c99c1d89c54116179bce4″,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=8cc45176fc75435ffcbe7443190559b5″,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=a7c2e3188cf497235aad6a6d0b621699″,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”thumbnail”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d1a5e32c3f0c1cd06dd2b1fb8762b68a”,”width”:140},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=140&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=4ff5bb5a4e64abef57f2f9b27cc23a00″,”width”:280},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=120&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=3253d7f7a53cad1163506e7abbcaf45a”,”width”:120},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=120&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=47a9094c772115b65595f6316a50b2ff”,”width”:240}]},{“weighting”:”supporting”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=380&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=4990ba260a303ef98a153d9ab0748bf7″,”width”:380},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=380&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=470494aede83ecab6f844d1c447de22e”,”width”:760},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=e4988f9a663f958acef4e176699b6399″,”width”:300},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=300&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=49b20321fcec3a697bcd03ef6e456d5e”,”width”:600},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=59b6108668e7078fe2cce40abf23b27b”,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=1ff3eaaeebef080bec20e711fdbdebd3″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=36442ed4c7435de1fa6af87606dbd411″,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3df2ff25bc5c99c1d89c54116179bce4″,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=8cc45176fc75435ffcbe7443190559b5″,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=a7c2e3188cf497235aad6a6d0b621699″,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”showcase”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=860&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=7958db13bd49e8a063bbcb0601447889″,”width”:860},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=860&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=13affc39aaed968e793f09a01e93c999″,”width”:1720},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=780&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=451365eafa0b21801394e3534f13125e”,”width”:780},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=780&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=383474f8635a9644b9d6f076ec4b196d”,”width”:1560},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=59b6108668e7078fe2cce40abf23b27b”,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=1ff3eaaeebef080bec20e711fdbdebd3″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=36442ed4c7435de1fa6af87606dbd411″,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3df2ff25bc5c99c1d89c54116179bce4″,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=8cc45176fc75435ffcbe7443190559b5″,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=a7c2e3188cf497235aad6a6d0b621699″,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”halfwidth”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=59b6108668e7078fe2cce40abf23b27b”,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=1ff3eaaeebef080bec20e711fdbdebd3″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=36442ed4c7435de1fa6af87606dbd411″,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3df2ff25bc5c99c1d89c54116179bce4″,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=8cc45176fc75435ffcbe7443190559b5″,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=a7c2e3188cf497235aad6a6d0b621699″,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”immersive”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=1900&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=1d0b542e350edaf54f72039253e66748″,”width”:1900},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=1900&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=650a2fa7291dd2c6c2e07df23342f6f4″,”width”:3800},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=1300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=07cecef28f72943faa93734df18e0c1b”,”width”:1300},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=1300&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=b3845e7044cd01ee5030fbcfe882044e”,”width”:2600},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=1140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=dd28f372cb3009ec5809679a29b7d489″,”width”:1140},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=1140&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=6aaf4f63eea30bc0c2d006e9df53dee6″,”width”:2280},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=980&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=ebf81f371d9235de2f28d398390ffb0f”,”width”:980},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=980&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=96d3ea84a71aceca1dca0d10acffb4fb”,”width”:1960},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=740&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=41dca1173c44e02872bbe81e5b523929″,”width”:740},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=740&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=fdd3477f6b84d6654db9601ce3b2a05f”,”width”:1480},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=660&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=f4435bfc0eb06ed8939ec7e926d6de1a”,”width”:660},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=660&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=899e1d1688f9b55c860292f05c6d9ee5″,”width”:1320},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=480&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=3d62c00125725fe20ff194c751ea9073″,”width”:480},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c546b398379555d68e6d0eed8a21440ef53f9021/0_28_3365_2020/master/3365.jpg?width=480&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=7b68b290c1396d3814e13be0832e69ac”,”width”:960}]}],”information”:{“alt”:”A vote casts her vote at a polling station in Berlin.”,”caption”:”A vote casts her vote at a polling station in Berlin.”,”credit score”:”{Photograph}: Philipp-Moritz Jenne/AP”}},{“_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Voter turnout on the poll field by 2pm was at 52%, up from 36.5% on the identical time in 2021 (+15.5pp, however take word that the 2021 election came about through the Covid-19 pandemic, so some voters opted for postal vote as an alternative), German federal electoral authorities have simply confirmed.

“,”elementId”:”f50a15c5-ad41-4f62-9c89-a401a2c01443″},{“_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Trying on the state-by-state breakdown from earlier within the day, reported by Welt, it looks as if there was a very excessive turnout within the state of Thuringia (44.5% at noon, up from 24.6% in 2021), which is an AfD stronghold and the place the far-right occasion gained the state elections in September final yr.

“,”elementId”:”d72d9628-72fc-4b90-b5af-1c5da0f791d1″},{“_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Berlin additionally reported a better turnout at midday with 33%, up from 25.4% in 2021.

“,”elementId”:”63b4eed5-60d3-46f3-9b46-9e97fd7cab73″},{“_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement”,”prefix”:”Associated: “,”textual content”:”Scholz urges German events to exclude far proper as AfD poised for state election victory”,”elementId”:”848a6ec6-e5ad-4b2f-a5cc-46e261dfa8f2″,”position”:”thumbnail”,”url”:”https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/sep/01/german-far-right-party-afd-state-election-victory-thuringia”}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”abstract”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1740321787000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”09.43 EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1740322973000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”10.02 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1740322435000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”09.53 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”09.53″,”title”:”Excessive turnout reported by 2pm”,”contributors”:[],”primaryDateLine”:”Solar 23 Feb 2025 14.09 EST”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First printed on Solar 23 Feb 2025 06.39 EST”},{“id”:”67bb2e6d8f0835381101aa9c”,”parts”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Opinion is divided as Germany faces what some describe as the “most important election in their lifetime”. The country is expected to shift to the right as Friedrich Merz is in pole position to become Germany’s next chancellor, while far-right party AfD could become the second most powerful party.

“,”elementId”:”aba81c46-5a52-4125-a232-af738e4e8215″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

So earlier today I asked voters at a polling station in central Berlin what they expected from the election and what they wanted the next chancellor to focus on.

“,”elementId”:”93679976-26d9-4a89-8699-b55cc7902c23″},{“expired”:false,”assetId”:”ybKbEARpmj8″,”posterImage”:[{“url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/c21c0e91c523b1141b5e1c4af27e58b5ec054b22/329_161_1270_714/1000.jpg”,”width”:1000},{“url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/c21c0e91c523b1141b5e1c4af27e58b5ec054b22/329_161_1270_714/500.jpg”,”width”:500},{“url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/c21c0e91c523b1141b5e1c4af27e58b5ec054b22/329_161_1270_714/140.jpg”,”width”:140},{“url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/c21c0e91c523b1141b5e1c4af27e58b5ec054b22/329_161_1270_714/1270.jpg”,”width”:1270}],”id”:”d0ed70fc-9d24-4b09-b004-7c4d0472c096″,”elementId”:”1a3873d3-109d-46fe-8878-39cca59b4a96″,”period”:101,”_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.YoutubeBlockElement”,”mediaTitle”:”‘Thrilling and a bit scary’: German voters react forward of election – video”,”channelId”:”UCIRYBXDze5krPDzAEOxFGVA”}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”abstract”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1740320365000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”09.19 EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1740321702000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”09.41 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1740321702000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”09.41 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”09.41″,”title”:”‘Thrilling and a bit scary’: German voters react forward of election – video”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Jakub Krupa”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2025/01/22/Jakub_Krupa.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=41cc9981ec7b067e2d3b5391c5a68a4f”,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2025/01/22/Jakub_Krupa.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=4a039a2b765744058f3c2c677268513e”}],”primaryDateLine”:”Solar 23 Feb 2025 14.09 EST”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First printed on Solar 23 Feb 2025 06.39 EST”},{“id”:”67bac20d8f086d3992205245″,”parts”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Europe correspondent

“,”elementId”:”4ef230d8-0c76-4bdc-9a73-afd794ad446b”},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.InteractiveAtomBlockElement”,”css”:”@charset “UTF-8”;@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:300;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:300;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:400;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:400;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:500;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:500;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:600;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:600;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:900;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:900;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Titlepiece;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-titlepiece/noalts-not-hinted/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-titlepiece/noalts-not-hinted/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-titlepiece/noalts-not-hinted/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal}div#maincontent:focus{box-shadow:none!important}@media (min-width: 71.25em){.content__main-column–interactive{margin-left:160px}}@media (min-width: 81.25em){.content__main-column–interactive{margin-left:240px}}.content__main-column–interactive:before{position:absolute;top:0;height:calc(100% + 15px);min-height:100px;content:””}@media (min-width: 71.25em){.content__main-column–interactive:before{border-left:1px solid #dcdcdc;z-index:-1;left:-10px}}@media (min-width: 81.25em){.content__main-column–interactive:before{border-left:1px solid #dcdcdc;left:-11px}}.content__main-column–interactive .element-inline,.content__main-column–interactive .element-atom{max-width:620px}@media (max-width: 46.24em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-atom{max-width:100%}}.content__main-column–interactive .element-showcase{margin-left:0}@media (min-width: 46.25em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-showcase{max-width:620px}}@media (min-width: 71.25em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-showcase{max-width:860px}}.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{max-width:1100px}@media (max-width: 46.24em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{width:100vw;position:relative;left:50%;right:50%;margin-left:-50vw!important;margin-right:-50vw!important}}@media (min-width: 46.25em) and (max-width: 71.24em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{margin-left:-20px;width:calc(100% + 60px)}}@media (min-width: 81.25em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{max-width:1260px}}.content__main-column–interactive .element-atom{margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;padding-bottom:12px;padding-top:12px}.content__main-column–interactive p{color:#121212;max-width:620px}p+.element-atom{padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0;margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:12px}body{–primary-text-color: #121212;–secondary-text-color: #707070;–tertiary-text-color: #707070;–primary-bg-color: #ffffff;–secondary-bg-color: #f3f3f3;–tertiary-bg-color: #f6f6f6;–primary-line-color: #333333;–secondary-line-color: #dcdcdc;–border-divider-color: #dcdcdc;–axis-color: #bababa;–primary-button-color: #121212;–primary-button-text-color: #ffffff;–primary-button-highlight-color: #333333;–highlight-color: #ffe500;–highlighted-text-color: #121212;–info-color: #00b2ff;–news-grey-01: #121212;–news-grey-02: #707070;–news-grey-03: #a1a1a1;–news-grey-04: #bababa;–news-grey-05: #dcdcdc;–news-grey-06: #f3f3f3;–news-core-01: #005689;–news-core-02: #0094da;–news-core-03: #c70000;–news-core-04: #23b4a9;–news-core-05: #494949;–news-core-06: #cca36e}@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark){body.ios,body.android{–primary-text-color: #dcdcdc;–secondary-text-color: #c8c8c8;–tertiary-text-color: #999999;–primary-bg-color: #1a1a1a;–secondary-bg-color: #383838;–tertiary-bg-color: #121212;–primary-line-color: #dcdcdc;–secondary-line-color: #707070;–border-divider-color: #606060;–axis-color: var(–news-grey-04);–primary-button-color: #383838;–primary-button-text-color: #dcdcdc;–primary-button-highlight-color: #707070;–highlight-color: #cda500;–highlighted-text-color: #121212;–info-color: #0077b6;–news-grey-01: #dcdcdc;–news-grey-02: #c8c8c8;–news-grey-03: #a1a1a1;–news-grey-04: #707070;–news-grey-05: #494949;–news-grey-06: #383838;–news-core-01: #0077b6;–news-core-02: #00b2ff;–news-core-03: #e33824;–news-core-04: #23b4a9;–news-core-05: #494949;–news-core-06: #cca36e}}h2{font-size:16px;line-height:20px;font-family:Guardian Headline,Guardian Egyptian Web,Guardian Headline Full,Georgia,serif;font-weight:400;font-size:18px;font-weight:700;margin-bottom:12px}.interactive-atom{margin:0;padding:0}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:300;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:300;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:400;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:400;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:500;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:500;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:600;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:600;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:900;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:900;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Titlepiece;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-titlepiece/noalts-not-hinted/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-titlepiece/noalts-not-hinted/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-titlepiece/noalts-not-hinted/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal}.interactive-wrapper.svelte-9mnz0u{background-color:#fff;padding-top:20px}.gv-chart-wrapper.svelte-9mnz0u{background:#fff;position:relative;z-index:1;padding-top:10px;border-top:1px solid #dcdcdc;border-bottom:1px solid #dcdcdc}.gv-blob{display:inline-block;height:.8em;width:.5em;border-radius:15%}.gv-big-blob{transform:translateY(3px)}.gv-blob{margin-right:4px}.gv-tt{padding:4px 8px 8px;position:absolute;z-index:2;width:164px;box-sizing:border-box;pointer-events:none;opacity:0;top:10px;background-color:#ffffffe6;border:1px solid #333;color:#121212;font-size:13px;line-height:18px;font-family:Guardian Text Sans Web,Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,Lucida Grande,sans-serif}.gv-tt table{width:100%}.gv-tt .gv-tt__date{font-size:16px;line-height:20px;font-family:Guardian Headline,Guardian Egyptian Web,Guardian Headline Full,Georgia,serif;font-weight:400;font-weight:700;font-size:18px}.gv-tt .gv-tt__subhead{color:#999;margin-bottom:4px;margin-top:2px}.gv-tt .gv-tt__avg{text-align:right}.gv-line{fill:none;stroke:#000;stroke-width:2px}.gv-circle{fill-opacity:.2;stroke-width:.4;stroke-opacity:.4}.gv-axes path{stroke:none}.gv-axes line{stroke:#333}.gv-axes text{font-size:13px;line-height:18px;font-family:Guardian Text Sans Web,Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,Lucida Grande,sans-serif;transform:translateY(2px);fill:#333}.gv-hoverline{stroke:#333;stroke-width:3px}.gv-endline{stroke:#333;stroke-dasharray:2}.gv-yaxis{stroke:#dcdcdc;stroke-dasharray:2}.gv-yaxis__text{font-size:13px;line-height:18px;font-family:Guardian Text Sans Web,Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,Lucida Grande,sans-serif;fill:#333}.gv-chart-svg{cursor:pointer}.gv-hide{display:none}.gv-caption{font-size:13px;line-height:18px;font-family:Guardian Text Sans Web,Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,Lucida Grande,sans-serif;color:#999;padding-bottom:2px;padding-top:4px}@media (max-width: 71.24em){.gv-caption{padding-left:10px}}.gv-threshold{font-size:12px;fill:#999;background-color:#fff;z-index:300}[data-party=SPD]{fill:#c70000;background:#c70000}[data-party=”CDU/CSU”]{fill:#333;background:#333}[data-party=FDP]{fill:#f5be2c;background:#f5be2c}[data-party=BSW]{fill:#bd5318;background:#bd5318}[data-party=GRÜNE]{fill:#3db540;background:#3db540}[data-party=AfD]{fill:#005689;background:#005689}[data-party=LINKE]{fill:#951d7a;background:#951d7a}[data-party-line=SPD]{stroke:#c70000}[data-party-line=”CDU/CSU”]{stroke:#333}[data-party-line=FDP]{stroke:#f5be2c}[data-party-line=LINKE]{stroke:#951d7a}[data-party-line=GRÜNE]{stroke:#3db540}[data-party-line=AfD]{stroke:#005689}[data-party-line=BSW]{stroke:#bd5318}n”,”url”:”https://api.nextgen.guardianapps.co.uk/embed/atom/interactive/interactivespercent2F2024percent2F11percent2Fgerman-opinion-pollspercent2Fdefault”,”id”:”interactives/2024/11/german-opinion-polls/default”,”elementId”:”e2b5a223-06e4-42cb-bd25-d58d0eae379f”,”js”:”n var el = doc.createElement(‘script’);n el.src=”https://interactive.guim.co.uk/atoms/2024/11/german-opinion-polls/default/v/1737541389639/app.js”;n doc.physique.appendChild(el);n “,”title”:”Svelte atom template”,”html”:”

“},{“_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

There appears little doubt that, barring any main surprises, the conservative Merz can be Germany’s subsequent chancellor. The CDU and its Bavarian sister occasion, the Christian Social Union (CSU), have been persistently and comfortably forward within the polls on about 30%, with the Different für Deutschland second on 20-21%.

“,”elementId”:”56ab82e7-e6d0-44fa-ab8a-7cbfb0e59044″},{“_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

There isn’t any obvious path to energy for the far-right AfD since all different events have dominated out working with a celebration they think about undemocratic.

“,”elementId”:”c569fbea-4890-4df0-a1b4-d6f884fb49d6″},{“_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

In response to the Guardian’s ballot tracker, the SPD are third on about 15% and the Greens fourth on 13%. The leftwing Die Linke are predicted to clear the 5% hurdle and anticipated to safe round 7-8% nevertheless it seems to be removed from sure that the “conservative-left” Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) or liberal FDP will do the identical.

“,”elementId”:”f4764df2-85d6-406e-8015-40dada182e08″},{“_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Relying on whether or not that trio (plus the native associations of Free Voters (FW), who might do nicely in Bavaria) rating 5% or extra, or qualify by way of the three-seat exception, the subsequent meeting might have 4 events or eight, essentially the most in trendy historical past.

“,”elementId”:”b0dce393-4763-4d5b-a2ab-4e300f627f7b”},{“_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

That makes the distribution of seats within the new parliament very laborious to foretell. Nevertheless, most analysts see the almost certainly final result being a CDU-led coalition authorities together with both Scholz’s Social Democrats or the Greens, or possibly each.

“,”elementId”:”efb92a6a-0657-48e2-8eaa-366038a254e4″}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”abstract”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1740310774000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”06.39 EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1740317435000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”08.30 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1740317435000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”08.30 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”08.30″,”title”:”What do the polls say?”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Jon Henley”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2016/09/22/Jon-Henley.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=49db88bf6fc8b042c62d52be8afd87ae”,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2017/10/06/Jon_Henley,_L.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=cf23d4c141249ac9dd9f5c331c359f12″}],”primaryDateLine”:”Solar 23 Feb 2025 14.09 EST”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First printed on Solar 23 Feb 2025 06.39 EST”},{“id”:”67babdb98f0835381101a89c”,”parts”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Europe correspondent

“,”elementId”:”94f5b614-adef-4b82-bdf1-e7bac3c17f56″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

The Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CDU/CSU) frontrunners, led by wealthy former asset manager Friedrich Merz, are proposing to cut taxes, tighten welfare eligibility, slash immigration, process asylum claims abroad, and boost aid to Ukraine.

“,”elementId”:”6c52a70f-d10e-4337-bf4d-a5981cdaadc4″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

The far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) has endorsed the concept of “re-migration”, threatening the mass deportation of migrants. It also pledges a return to the deutschmark, military conscription, and sweeping education reforms.

“,”elementId”:”30c28704-df41-483e-934a-b93a68f9de55″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Scholz’s Social Democratic party (SPD) aims to support low-income families by cutting VAT on food and tax for low earners and raising the minimum wage. It also aims to curb immigration and proposes a €100bn infrastructure investment fund, but is more cautious on Ukraine. Scholz has refused to send long-range Taurus missiles to Kyiv, defending the decision as a “prudent” anti-escalation measure.

“,”elementId”:”0d5438dc-c1dd-4320-8991-f0bb769549b0″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

The Greens have announced plans for a “billionaire tax” to help poorer households through the green transition. They are also in favour of increasing the minimum wage and are pushing for incentives to speed up the switch to renewable energy.

“,”elementId”:”047dbd65-0b1f-4a1f-9799-f14971fe89eb”},{“displayCredit”:true,”_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.ImageBlockElement”,”role”:”inline”,”media”:{“allImages”:[{“index”:0,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”1759″,”width”:”2933″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/2933.jpg”},{“index”:1,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”isMaster”:”true”,”height”:”1759″,”width”:”2933″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg”},{“index”:2,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”1200″,”width”:”2000″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/2000.jpg”},{“index”:3,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”600″,”width”:”1000″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/1000.jpg”},{“index”:4,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”300″,”width”:”500″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/500.jpg”},{“index”:5,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”84″,”width”:”140″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/140.jpg”}]},”elementId”:”1c0aa595-4b45-41ab-8428-abbe9ab798b7″,”imageSources”:[{“weighting”:”inline”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=de046e25c61deabab1a260ecdcf6418f”,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=e7e0f28aa8a6227c65850241b3b20649″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=763ca5526330e259e3d51b5cb8ebb98f”,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=39e1ae25d88750c6689dab745ebf761a”,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9266d62b3c06ffbf5f6199033eb9e5ad”,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=8454f93ccca1b7215f0c6d3017d5326d”,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”thumbnail”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=c24a9ca9f90cdce2c57f4e9a7474bbd9″,”width”:140},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=140&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=b2131b314bcc8224953df3ce49668c48″,”width”:280},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=120&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=b91ce784822a3113a6d13ff327e1ed02″,”width”:120},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=120&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=0158b457a99c187466226437f64a4741″,”width”:240}]},{“weighting”:”supporting”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=380&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=88e36c572f3a9cb045559ce7374de6ba”,”width”:380},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=380&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=f3b5562960d1ebd18235ed15b1e10d42″,”width”:760},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=aa6f35427fb6ca774fdac2a1e657a55e”,”width”:300},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=300&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=558df52d264f8daa8a8f4848be7a246f”,”width”:600},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=de046e25c61deabab1a260ecdcf6418f”,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=e7e0f28aa8a6227c65850241b3b20649″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=763ca5526330e259e3d51b5cb8ebb98f”,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=39e1ae25d88750c6689dab745ebf761a”,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9266d62b3c06ffbf5f6199033eb9e5ad”,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=8454f93ccca1b7215f0c6d3017d5326d”,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”showcase”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=860&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=3fd0a5b6011bca2a19a52acfc6668add”,”width”:860},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=860&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=50892c011724d53255476a7e5a38856b”,”width”:1720},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=780&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=efd6624b11aecd909852a154374ad20f”,”width”:780},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=780&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=cefabc6daa559593adc7fb4085b95afc”,”width”:1560},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=de046e25c61deabab1a260ecdcf6418f”,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=e7e0f28aa8a6227c65850241b3b20649″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=763ca5526330e259e3d51b5cb8ebb98f”,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=39e1ae25d88750c6689dab745ebf761a”,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9266d62b3c06ffbf5f6199033eb9e5ad”,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=8454f93ccca1b7215f0c6d3017d5326d”,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”halfwidth”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=de046e25c61deabab1a260ecdcf6418f”,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=e7e0f28aa8a6227c65850241b3b20649″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=763ca5526330e259e3d51b5cb8ebb98f”,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=39e1ae25d88750c6689dab745ebf761a”,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9266d62b3c06ffbf5f6199033eb9e5ad”,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=8454f93ccca1b7215f0c6d3017d5326d”,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”immersive”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=1900&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=b3a5a5e6a2ecb697330a16373a515a00″,”width”:1900},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=1900&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=4fc45497ee7408fd5792ec8360e83131″,”width”:3800},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=1300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=f81384e15a6db67b7fc138c1271a61ac”,”width”:1300},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=1300&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=2d3dfd5410298049e520d8fe46e9faef”,”width”:2600},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=1140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=72784d614d5b4d2c7ecd73a3cefab2b8″,”width”:1140},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=1140&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=c5a1360e31ec57aea74d8ebb96ef2439″,”width”:2280},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=980&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d36b108571e2c6ce2ccc149d1435c104″,”width”:980},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=980&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=4a76dd9bc2a9e475fd195819e5b3c3b8″,”width”:1960},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=740&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=790ddb9f8993e7b74681bb0b96a5f6b4″,”width”:740},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=740&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=1e2d25f1d492a1f543105b5e43acef05″,”width”:1480},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=660&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=aaf1d44367c069b12c5f5efb7d87974e”,”width”:660},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=660&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=b2da01fb577138da3f7413cb10b0b8ae”,”width”:1320},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=480&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d5516359f6afa230f7a62686c54f5a59″,”width”:480},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/29ba57c299b96d26a1a5573e89f682be35f1352b/0_101_2933_1759/master/2933.jpg?width=480&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=d4e79f99e7b8b0214bf3e36df5828666″,”width”:960}]}],”information”:{“alt”:”Election posters, exhibiting German chancellor Olaf Scholz, proper, and CDU high candidate Friedrich Merz, stand on a meadow in Nieder-Erlenbach close to Frankfurt.”,”caption”:”Election posters, exhibiting German chancellor Olaf Scholz, proper, and CDU high candidate Friedrich Merz, stand on a meadow in Nieder-Erlenbach close to Frankfurt.”,”credit score”:”{Photograph}: Michael Probst/AP”}}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”abstract”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1740310774000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”06.39 EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1740314884000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”07.48 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1740314884000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”07.48 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”07.48″,”title”:”Who’re the important thing gamers and what have they promised?”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Jon Henley”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2016/09/22/Jon-Henley.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=49db88bf6fc8b042c62d52be8afd87ae”,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2017/10/06/Jon_Henley,_L.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=cf23d4c141249ac9dd9f5c331c359f12″}],”primaryDateLine”:”Solar 23 Feb 2025 14.09 EST”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First printed on Solar 23 Feb 2025 06.39 EST”},{“id”:”67babb568f08089227381baf”,”parts”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Europe correspondent

“,”elementId”:”4d0a07ac-777e-4fa8-9a83-252279fdcb93″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

The three-way “traffic-light” coalition of Social Democrats (SPD), Free Democrats (FDP) and Greens ruling Germany since 2021 collapsed in November under the weight of its own ideological contradictions and the country’s economic and security challenges.

“,”elementId”:”6a878c33-64da-40ca-88e8-2a4f7a09f966″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

The outgoing Social Democrat chancellor, Olaf Scholz, fired his liberal finance minister, Christian Lindner, over a bitter months-long budget dispute, then called a confidence vote in parliament deliberately in order to lose it – which he duly did.

“,”elementId”:”651743da-3663-42e4-bafa-d2ff5a2250f0″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Whoever becomes chancellor will have to tackle an economy beset by high energy and labour costs, stifling bureaucracy, crumbling infrastructure and an economy that has shrunk for two consecutive years for the first time in decades.

“,”elementId”:”58be37d0-94a1-41b7-9394-2df915a98281″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

The slowdown with trade partner China has dealt a blow to German exports, a traditional strength, while the key car industry has been slow to develop attractive electric vehicles (EVs) and now faces the threat of US tariffs under Donald Trump.

“,”elementId”:”649d7ca1-c7e1-4471-8da8-85ecde6278bc”},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Optimists say the vote could give Germany a vital shot at investment, modernisation and renewal. Pessimists say the problems are so structural and expectations so high that the middle-of-the-road coalition that will probably emerge is doomed to disappoint.

“,”elementId”:”eb11e1a2-1ed3-4836-ae2b-489a22dc13f7″},{“displayCredit”:true,”_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.ImageBlockElement”,”role”:”inline”,”media”:{“allImages”:[{“index”:0,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”2236″,”width”:”3725″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/3725.jpg”},{“index”:1,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”isMaster”:”true”,”height”:”2236″,”width”:”3725″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg”},{“index”:2,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”1200″,”width”:”2000″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/2000.jpg”},{“index”:3,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”600″,”width”:”1000″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/1000.jpg”},{“index”:4,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”300″,”width”:”500″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/500.jpg”},{“index”:5,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”84″,”width”:”140″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/140.jpg”}]},”elementId”:”8641eeb7-c62a-4a0a-a152-5e9c1eb2713a”,”imageSources”:[{“weighting”:”inline”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=06566f4988e76a371301867881f93993″,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=5e099b0c6d1b62f02e0a79b38124f480″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=74bb05ee68a5f0e54ddf70b5b97f5284″,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=c93680a47f24fe33333f85bc84b63c3a”,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=1a3dd0f2d52e5c753bb4b08102c8a316″,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=cd32cbab391d038f1c589cda6bab4b64″,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”thumbnail”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=76abc1fe594080888490f499302fb34e”,”width”:140},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=140&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=6b7ad0921cd13052a17a583f3cdc9e19″,”width”:280},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=120&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=40a5b2a1b808869bdf51f3c88ad7d2ea”,”width”:120},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=120&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=ce304f5ff42565ed494ea79d7119b19b”,”width”:240}]},{“weighting”:”supporting”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=380&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=e68115221c69dc8908e9afceb4185879″,”width”:380},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=380&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3d169f7ecb0f2b6d133b55d05b935b83″,”width”:760},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=7bd286a74d0549701aa6702928645f5c”,”width”:300},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=300&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=4f739b63dc5253f1010d5d800d49861b”,”width”:600},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=06566f4988e76a371301867881f93993″,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=5e099b0c6d1b62f02e0a79b38124f480″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=74bb05ee68a5f0e54ddf70b5b97f5284″,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=c93680a47f24fe33333f85bc84b63c3a”,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=1a3dd0f2d52e5c753bb4b08102c8a316″,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=cd32cbab391d038f1c589cda6bab4b64″,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”showcase”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=860&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=4fc05a27ab4e7b1e71f53cacc73125df”,”width”:860},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=860&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=d34d0c76713bf416d7d7da1d27a13499″,”width”:1720},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=780&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=0e39204f6c4f58ebdbc7f201f39b4e41″,”width”:780},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=780&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=bab370187b9635ecd48bfbdc1181f5d6″,”width”:1560},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=06566f4988e76a371301867881f93993″,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=5e099b0c6d1b62f02e0a79b38124f480″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=74bb05ee68a5f0e54ddf70b5b97f5284″,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=c93680a47f24fe33333f85bc84b63c3a”,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=1a3dd0f2d52e5c753bb4b08102c8a316″,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=cd32cbab391d038f1c589cda6bab4b64″,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”halfwidth”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=06566f4988e76a371301867881f93993″,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=5e099b0c6d1b62f02e0a79b38124f480″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=74bb05ee68a5f0e54ddf70b5b97f5284″,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=c93680a47f24fe33333f85bc84b63c3a”,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=1a3dd0f2d52e5c753bb4b08102c8a316″,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=cd32cbab391d038f1c589cda6bab4b64″,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”immersive”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=1900&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=ce167e0b19865022dc6e3dfc160b89de”,”width”:1900},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=1900&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=f79e8e465b467117103ffed390b89532″,”width”:3800},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=1300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=e663626bd19533765246bd8fdcc9e9d8″,”width”:1300},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=1300&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=af46add5f34a9bcdf27adeb633552475″,”width”:2600},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=1140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=2d3e1e3b79ce42267b30c763cc718c5d”,”width”:1140},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=1140&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=e06ed87b1225040537b64bf521c754fe”,”width”:2280},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=980&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9908839585ffeaf76e0a26fccfac43d8″,”width”:980},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=980&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=a6e9c3bafee50aabcee0aefe31f6fda6″,”width”:1960},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=740&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=0ecc1d50a4152e41a0752682fdb561e3″,”width”:740},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=740&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=8aaf03411205abd92d01abc0807ab9a7″,”width”:1480},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=660&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=1cdacd68437c2c9a243edb2ef089961e”,”width”:660},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=660&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=e5343552a9a074485de9356d4aa901a9″,”width”:1320},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=480&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=70e53bcd025901cadc71fccf6e356ce7″,”width”:480},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2221278eaf10139d8a3cafc02b9def6a64937620/0_123_3725_2236/master/3725.jpg?width=480&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3718b8768ceb00896fa7ac385f4f7c90″,”width”:960}]}],”information”:{“alt”:”German chancellor Olaf Scholz of the Social Democratic occasion (SPD) seems to be up from the stage at a residents’ dialogue in Brandenburg, at some point forward of the nationwide election.”,”caption”:”German chancellor Olaf Scholz of the Social Democratic occasion (SPD) seems to be up from the stage at a residents’ dialogue in Brandenburg, at some point forward of the nationwide election.”,”credit score”:”{Photograph}: Carsten Koall/AP”}}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”abstract”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1740310774000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”06.39 EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1740312506000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”07.08 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1740312506000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”07.08 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”07.08″,”title”:”Why does the German election matter?”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Jon Henley”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2016/09/22/Jon-Henley.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=49db88bf6fc8b042c62d52be8afd87ae”,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2017/10/06/Jon_Henley,_L.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=cf23d4c141249ac9dd9f5c331c359f12″}],”primaryDateLine”:”Solar 23 Feb 2025 14.09 EST”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First printed on Solar 23 Feb 2025 06.39 EST”},{“id”:”67bab6bf8f086d399220521d”,”parts”:[{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Guten Tag, and good day from Berlin.

“,”elementId”:”f248d9b0-7f22-49d0-b731-2317a55ad53b”},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Sixty million Germans choose their next government today, which will lead Europe’s largest economy through what will most likely be the most tumultuous era in decades.

“,”elementId”:”8c4f0286-89e0-44a0-95ab-b6461848e946″},{“_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

Voters have to choose who will be given the task of steering Germany through an existential security crisis in Europe with Ukraine and Russia, while at the same time facing unprecedented structural challenges to the country’s economic model amid a worsening geopolitical outlook abroad, most obviously characterised by a crumbling transatlantic alliance with the new US administration of Donald Trump.

“,”elementId”:”2210d82c-4e31-4cc9-8739-1462904ee4ca”},{“displayCredit”:true,”_type”:”model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.ImageBlockElement”,”role”:”inline”,”media”:{“allImages”:[{“index”:0,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”2631″,”width”:”4384″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/4384.jpg”},{“index”:1,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”isMaster”:”true”,”height”:”2631″,”width”:”4384″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg”},{“index”:2,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”1200″,”width”:”2000″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/2000.jpg”},{“index”:3,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”600″,”width”:”1000″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/1000.jpg”},{“index”:4,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”300″,”width”:”500″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/500.jpg”},{“index”:5,”fields”:{“aspectRatio”:”5:3″,”height”:”84″,”width”:”140″},”mediaType”:”Image”,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/140.jpg”}]},”elementId”:”60bf62db-1455-431a-bebd-a4ad47fecab2″,”imageSources”:[{“weighting”:”inline”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=8cbc78f9069cfcc32c8cf52f2b5b0c02″,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=90cfc4b14d364e8d88ae094cda3985c8″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=c7e7c35cf334ab6ab523bcf5c1bf4d61″,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=51560b7b1c7ef22bab460fb4c3f7a2f1″,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d6705aabf406e4d05db8a136d6f3b9bc”,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=8448ca7accf6eb440548b843c60f5835″,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”thumbnail”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9cbdb91d603903d3e94250dfcb1397ba”,”width”:140},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=140&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=f31651018413bb6725fe20a56016b978″,”width”:280},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=120&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=813cda0a2e2d48f13bd691d16065636c”,”width”:120},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=120&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=ed53fa7ad94db1bdcca51f913e8527c5″,”width”:240}]},{“weighting”:”supporting”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=380&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=faba00fab03aa809c6e4b4add4d8f887″,”width”:380},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=380&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=37d0246fc7c36219781cdb264f0452bf”,”width”:760},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=e3c031ba5b5ef08aef554e8588f85826″,”width”:300},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=300&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=3e64848407f5fd84270aa9372e171456″,”width”:600},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=8cbc78f9069cfcc32c8cf52f2b5b0c02″,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=90cfc4b14d364e8d88ae094cda3985c8″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=c7e7c35cf334ab6ab523bcf5c1bf4d61″,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=51560b7b1c7ef22bab460fb4c3f7a2f1″,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d6705aabf406e4d05db8a136d6f3b9bc”,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=8448ca7accf6eb440548b843c60f5835″,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”showcase”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=860&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=2331d3cedc408eb42269228ef29d0553″,”width”:860},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=860&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=db63a8821e158dd85b82fe64b6b70076″,”width”:1720},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=780&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=e1159aa3594110959b93a89ccc4af3fe”,”width”:780},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=780&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=f547c33b7350cf47ad1fe8e241094cf1″,”width”:1560},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=8cbc78f9069cfcc32c8cf52f2b5b0c02″,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=90cfc4b14d364e8d88ae094cda3985c8″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=c7e7c35cf334ab6ab523bcf5c1bf4d61″,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=51560b7b1c7ef22bab460fb4c3f7a2f1″,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d6705aabf406e4d05db8a136d6f3b9bc”,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=8448ca7accf6eb440548b843c60f5835″,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”halfwidth”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=8cbc78f9069cfcc32c8cf52f2b5b0c02″,”width”:620},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=90cfc4b14d364e8d88ae094cda3985c8″,”width”:1240},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=605&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=c7e7c35cf334ab6ab523bcf5c1bf4d61″,”width”:605},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=51560b7b1c7ef22bab460fb4c3f7a2f1″,”width”:1210},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=445&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=d6705aabf406e4d05db8a136d6f3b9bc”,”width”:445},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=445&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=8448ca7accf6eb440548b843c60f5835″,”width”:890}]},{“weighting”:”immersive”,”srcSet”:[{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=1900&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=8c9f62e55aa53eb7d0e28b543f269b7a”,”width”:1900},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=1900&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=54f25c3a36156af69bdf8fde41979d2e”,”width”:3800},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=1300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=12869c5e875a2cb41f7e6fa1891c0c2f”,”width”:1300},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=1300&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=d1cbd931fdd1966e02446b953dbd527f”,”width”:2600},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=1140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=9881523aafa2b94f512bf56cd143ca16″,”width”:1140},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=1140&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=59b8e096d278861b928ba2fe822d9ab5″,”width”:2280},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=980&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=74774275ee80b7d792822509d6d51ec4″,”width”:980},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=980&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=cabb007f22e052d4598e45407a8eba8e”,”width”:1960},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=740&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=63f76f2f8aa298c42cea32529145a578″,”width”:740},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=740&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=5e3ed42873e0eedd340e389e1369197a”,”width”:1480},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=660&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=31eb359bd9e0bbebcb793ee6b8fec8b3″,”width”:660},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=660&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=57f9c5337b47bc6f1063072007263ef1″,”width”:1320},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=480&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=18b45b975bf048547bf8d20721d830f8″,”width”:480},{“src”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5918309d19de3b04de3926090f2a45385fe96a2b/0_146_4384_2631/master/4384.jpg?width=480&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=aa79473981dad867b9375519ffffbd6f”,”width”:960}]}],”information”:{“alt”:”A person makes cleaning soap bubbles in entrance of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin.”,”caption”:”A person makes cleaning soap bubbles in entrance of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin.”,”credit score”:”{Photograph}: Michael Probst/AP”}},{“_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

The conservative opposition chief Friedrich Merz is extensively anticipated to attain a win and get the job. However apart from that, there are extra questions than solutions. Who will he govern with? What number of events will get into the Bundestag? Will the far-right as soon as once more see report rises of their assist, and if that’s the case, what is going to this imply for German politics?

“,”elementId”:”334db1ad-e34d-47f3-8615-3d439bcf25e0″},{“_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

The polling stations have been open since 8am native time (7am GMT) and can shut at 6pm native time (5pm GMT) after we ought to get an exit ballot and a primary indication of what awaits Germany subsequent.

“,”elementId”:”c99ac052-f5a5-43b8-b5a6-00c7a7afa917″},{“_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement”,”html”:”

We’ll deliver you all the important thing updates all through the day, serving to you to know the context of the vote, summarising the primary themes of the marketing campaign, and bringing first-hand studies from on the bottom in Berlin.

“,”elementId”:”2644ab43-9389-42d4-b100-e179b29af137″},{“expired”:false,”assetId”:”HSrg6_CCtH8″,”posterImage”:[{“url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/15dc9d7490f81e9926bab756a9bfb5e208fd600c/0_0_1920_1080/1000.jpg”,”width”:1000},{“url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/15dc9d7490f81e9926bab756a9bfb5e208fd600c/0_0_1920_1080/500.jpg”,”width”:500},{“url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/15dc9d7490f81e9926bab756a9bfb5e208fd600c/0_0_1920_1080/140.jpg”,”width”:140},{“url”:”https://media.guim.co.uk/15dc9d7490f81e9926bab756a9bfb5e208fd600c/0_0_1920_1080/1920.jpg”,”width”:1920}],”id”:”0ffc1362-1d23-438a-a9d3-12dc825acddd”,”elementId”:”a839d5b1-952c-468a-9c9e-008e74dbf254″,”period”:33,”_type”:”mannequin.dotcomrendering.pageElements.YoutubeBlockElement”,”mediaTitle”:”The Guardian’s Jakub Krupa previews our German election protection from Berlin – video”,”channelId”:”UCIRYBXDze5krPDzAEOxFGVA”}],”attributes”:{“pinned”:false,”keyEvent”:true,”abstract”:false},”blockCreatedOn”:1740310774000,”blockCreatedOnDisplay”:”06.39 EST”,”blockLastUpdated”:1740310762000,”blockLastUpdatedDisplay”:”06.39 EST”,”blockFirstPublished”:1740310774000,”blockFirstPublishedDisplay”:”06.39 EST”,”blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone”:”06.39″,”title”:”Opening: Germany votes”,”contributors”:[{“name”:”Jakub Krupa”,”imageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2025/01/22/Jakub_Krupa.jpg?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=41cc9981ec7b067e2d3b5391c5a68a4f”,”largeImageUrl”:”https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2025/01/22/Jakub_Krupa.png?width=300&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=4a039a2b765744058f3c2c677268513e”}],”primaryDateLine”:”Solar 23 Feb 2025 14.09 EST”,”secondaryDateLine”:”First printed on Solar 23 Feb 2025 06.39 EST”}],”filterKeyEvents”:false,”id”:”key-events-carousel-mobile”,”absoluteServerTimes”:false,”renderingTarget”:”Internet”}”>

Key occasions

What’s in Merz’s in-tray as incoming chancellor?

Kate Connolly

Berlin correspondent

Friedrich Merz, a former banker who has by no means been a authorities minister, seems virtually sure to be the subsequent chancellor of Germany as his conservative CDU/CSU alliance are projected to win essentially the most votes in Sunday’s essential federal election.

What in his in-tray?

• Relations with the US beneath Donald Trump

• Fixing the economic system

• Ukraine

• Responding to the fast rise of the far proper

• Coping with the shadow of Angela Merkel

Learn extra about every of those 5 key factors right here:

Response from AfD’s Alice Weidel

Kate Connolly

Berlin correspondent

Talking within the final hour to broadcaster ARD, a positively glowing Alice Weidel, co-leader of the far-right Different für Deutschland (AfD) known as the outcome “historic” for her occasion, having doubled the variety of votes from 2021.

Struggling in opposition to the celebrations occurring round her on the occasion headquarters in Berlin, Weidel stated her occasion remained open to coalition talks with different events, and stated excluding the AfD was the equal to “voter fraud”.

She stated: “Our hand is outstretched,” and her occasion wished to “put into drive the desire of the folks”.

No political change in Germany was potential with out the AfD, she stated.

She argued {that a} coalition between the conservative CDU/CSU, the SPD and the Greens – mathematically the almost certainly proper now – would merely be a repetition of the “usual” politics.

In her response to the vote, she accused the CDU of getting “lifted” the programme of the AfD “virtually 100%”, however stated with its 140 seats in parliament – up from 85 within the final one – the AfD was able to put its energy to make use of, supporting “wise proposals” by the CDU/CSU reminiscent of lowering forms and slicing taxes.

She made no express reference to migration coverage, even after the AfD not too long ago gave its parliamentary assist to a proposal to regulate migration on the borders, put ahead by the CDU.

Weidel stated her parliamentary group would assemble on Tuesday to debate its future position, and stated it was able to “very relaxedly” interact in politics following its beautiful outcome, and would see it as its purpose to “hunt the opposite events”, to make sure they applied “wise insurance policies for our nation”.

Conservatives poised to win German election however far-right AfD doubles assist – snap evaluation

Deborah Cole

Berlin correspondent

The conservative opposition CDU/CSU has gained essentially the most votes in Germany’s common election, exit polls indicated, however a surge by the far-right Different für Deutschland (AfD) occasion is more likely to complicate the formation of a authorities prepared to assist spearhead a European response to new world threats.

The CDU/CSU candidate, Friedrich Merz, appeared finest positioned to be tasked with forming a ruling coalition on Sunday evening after clinching roughly 29% of the vote amid excessive turnout, in keeping with exit polls launched on public tv networks.

The AfD, using widespread anger about immigration, violent crime and excessive power prices, garnered about 20% of the vote – coming in second place and practically doubling its outcome on the final election in 2021.

The AfD is about to turn into the largest opposition occasion even whereas it’s beneath surveillance by safety authorities as a suspected extremist drive. It has grown steadily extra radical since its launch by Eurosceptic professors 12 years in the past.

Vote transfers to/from CDU – snap evaluation

Kate Connolly

Berlin correspondent

In response to preliminary evaluation, the CDU gained 1.8 million voters from the SPD, 1.3 million from the FDP, in addition to securing the votes 1.5 million individuals who had beforehand by no means voted.

In flip, the CDU misplaced 830,000 voters to the AfD.

One to observe: smaller events

Jakub Krupa

I earlier talked about how the variety of events within the subsequent Bundestag might flip to be essential for who will get to kind the subsequent authorities.

If each the FDP and the BSW fail to get into the Bundestag, the Union will be capable of rule in a two-party coalition with the SPD, with projected 327 votes (316 wanted for majority.)

But when each smaller events get in, they would want to draft the Greens in to safe the bulk. They’d have simply 293 votes with the SPD, however 379 in a three-way coalition, in keeping with ARD figures.