Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democrats took the highest portion of a record number of votes. An ascendant far right, crumbling international order and sluggish German economy face the incoming chancellor.

German conservative candidate for chancellor and Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party leader Friedrich Merz speaks on the day of a party leadership meeting following the general election in Berlin,

Merz expressed concern over changing relations with Washington under the Trump administration, emphasizing the need for gradual independence from the U.S.

Germany faces its second change of leader in less than four years after the head of the center-right opposition won Sunday’s election

Friedrich Merz is on course to become post-World War II Germany’s 10th chancellor, the culmination of a yearslong political career that was once sidelined by his party’s iconic leader

The contenders in Germany's election made their final appeals to voters Saturday, with opposition leader and front-runner Friedrich Merz vowing to revive the stagnant economy and defend Europe's interests in the face of a confrontational U.

German conservative leader Friedrich Merz, the presumptive next chancellor, has won his constituency in Sunday's parliamentary election, while a number of political heavyweights suffered humiliating defeats.

That paves the way for their candidate, Friedrich Merz (pictured), to take over from Olaf Scholz as chancellor after coalition talks. The second was that the hard-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) had surged to its best-ever score,