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| Angela Merkel celebrates after German election | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Angela Merkel has urged her party to celebrate after exit polls suggested she was set to win a third term as German chancellor. | |
| Her Christian Democrats took about 42% of the vote, according to exit polls. | |
| But Mrs Merkel may not be able to form her preferred coalition, as her Free Democrat partners may not have secured the 5% needed to enter parliament. | |
| Mrs Merkel may be forced to seek a grand coalition with the Social Democrats - estimated to have won 26%. | |
| Exit polls for ARD public television put the liberal Free Democrats (FDP) on 4.7%, which if confirmed would be a disaster for the junior coalition partner, leaving it with no national representation in parliament. | Exit polls for ARD public television put the liberal Free Democrats (FDP) on 4.7%, which if confirmed would be a disaster for the junior coalition partner, leaving it with no national representation in parliament. |
| Senior party member Christian Lindner called it "the bitterest hour". | |
| The FDP was beaten by the Green Party (8%) and the former communist Left Party (8.5%), and even, according to exit polls, the new Alternative fuer Deutschland, which advocates withdrawal from the euro currency and took 4.9%, just short of the parliamentary threshold. | |
| Turnout appeared to be higher than at the last federal election. At 14:00 (12:00 GMT) it measured 41.4% of eligible voters, compared to 36.1% at the same point in 2009. | Turnout appeared to be higher than at the last federal election. At 14:00 (12:00 GMT) it measured 41.4% of eligible voters, compared to 36.1% at the same point in 2009. |
| 'Something fantastic' | |
| "We have a clear mandate from voters to form a government," said Volker Kauder, leader of the Christian Democrats' (CDU's) parliamentary group. The outcome showed that "voters want Angela Merkel to remain chancellor" for a third term, he said. | |
| Mrs Merkel thanked supporters and added: "We can celebrate tonight because we have done something fantastic." | |
| But, in a reference to coalition building, she said it was "too early to say exactly what we'll do". | |
| Mrs Merkel has made clear she would be prepared to work with the Social Democrats (SPD) in a grand coalition, as she did in 2005-09. | Mrs Merkel has made clear she would be prepared to work with the Social Democrats (SPD) in a grand coalition, as she did in 2005-09. |
| The SPD has been more reluctant to consider linking up with the CDU again. The party leader, Peer Steinbrueck, was finance minister in the previous grand coalition, but has said he would not serve in such a government again. | The SPD has been more reluctant to consider linking up with the CDU again. The party leader, Peer Steinbrueck, was finance minister in the previous grand coalition, but has said he would not serve in such a government again. |
| The SPD would prefer to enter coalition with the Green Party, but does not appear to have the votes to do so, and has ruled out a three-way alliance including the Left Party (Die Linke). | The SPD would prefer to enter coalition with the Green Party, but does not appear to have the votes to do so, and has ruled out a three-way alliance including the Left Party (Die Linke). |
| Analysts think the SPD will agree on a coalition with the CDU. | Analysts think the SPD will agree on a coalition with the CDU. |