Trump Congratulates German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Poll Win

Merkel’s party emerged as the largest, but its support slumped to the lowest since 1949, according to exit polls.

• Angela Merkel appointed Germany’s Vice Chancellor for the fourth time
  
• Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party secured around 33 percent votes
  
• The party’s vote share decreased by about 9 percent compared to last election in 2013
  
• CDU will now be required to form a coalition government with new partners
  

Germany's Plausible 'Jamaica' Coalition

After winning the fourth term, Angela Merkel now faces the tricky prospect of forming a coalition with two disparate new partners after voters weakened her conservatives and a nationalist, anti-migrant party, Alternative for Germany, or AfD, surged into parliament.

“We have a mandate to form a new government, and no government can be formed against us,” Merkel told cheering supporters. She added that it wasn't a “matter of course” to finish first after 12 years in power, and that the past four years were “extremely challenging”.

The most politically plausible option is a three-way coalition with the pro-business Free Democrats and the traditionally left-leaning Greens.

The combination, called a “Jamaica” coalition because the parties' colors match those of the Caribbean nation's flag, hasn't been tried before in a national government.

Merkel recently said she will seek talks with the two parties, as well as with the Social Democrats. There's unlikely to be much movement before a state election 15 October in Lower Saxony, one of Germany’s most populous states.

Trump Congratulates Merkel on Poll Win

US President Donald Trump congratulated German Chancellor Angela Merkel on her election victory in a telephone conversation on Thursday in which they also discussed the Iran nuclear deal, the White House said.

The leaders discussed how to counter Iran’s malign activities in the Middle East, and addressed the nuclear deal and Iran’s missile program, and its non-compliance with relevant United Nations resolutions.

White House statement

Merkel's Bloc Gets 33.2% Vote: Exit Polls

Chancellor Angela Merkel won a fourth term in office on 24 September, but will have to build an uneasy coalition to form a German government after her conservatives haemorrhaged support in the face of a surge by the far-right.

The anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) stunned the establishment by winning 13.1 percent of the vote, projected results showed, a result that will bring a far-right party into parliament for the first time in more than half a century.

Merkel's conservative bloc emerged as the largest parliamentary party but, with just 33.2 percent of the vote, saw its support slump to the lowest since 1949 - the first time national elections were held in post-war Germany.

Her main Social Democrat rivals also received their worst result since the 1940s - just 20.8 percent - after nearly half of voters repudiated the two parties that have dominated Germany since World War II.

'Had Hoped For a Slightly Better Result': Angela Merkel

With parliament now fragmented, Merkel appears likely to cobble together a tricky three-way coalition with a pro-business group and the Greens.

Merkel said the success of the far-right was a test for Germans. It was important to listen to the concerns of their voters and win them back.

Of course we had hoped for a slightly better result. But we mustn’t forget that we have just completed an extraordinarily challenging legislative period, so I am happy that we reached the strategic goals of our election campaign. We are the strongest party, we have the mandate to build the next government - and there cannot be a coalition government built against us,

The election was fought on the tense backdrop of surging support for far-left and far-right parties across Europe.