CDU/CSU bloc finishes first in Germany's early federal election

Germany's CDU/CSU alliance won the largest share of second votes in the early federal election on 23 February 2025. Friedrich Merz was its candidate for chancellor, while the Alternative for Germany placed second and the Social Democratic Party recorded its weakest result in a federal election since the postwar republic began.

The election followed the collapse of Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition and a lost confidence vote. Germany's mixed-member system uses constituency and party-list votes to allocate the Bundestag, so the winning alliance did not automatically receive a parliamentary majority.

The AfD's gains were especially strong in eastern states, but other major parties ruled out coalition with it. Coalition arithmetic therefore directed the CDU/CSU toward negotiations with the SPD. A “firewall” is a political commitment, not a constitutional rule.

The campaign focused on migration, economic stagnation, energy, Ukraine and government stability. Vote totals cannot prove a single motive, and a party's national label should not be assigned to every supporter as a full ideological identity.

The Federal Returning Officer's results establish the ranking and seats. This item records the election result, separate from coalition agreement and Merz's later parliamentary election as chancellor. It avoids the presidential shorthand that the German public directly elected him on 23 February.

A new smaller Bundestag resulted from electoral reform intended to remove overhang and compensation seats. Comparing its raw seat totals with earlier elections requires accounting for the changed chamber size rather than interpreting every difference as voter movement.