The social-democratic opposition obtained 25.7 per cent, the Greens 8.4 per cent, while the FDP liberals, the Eurosceptic Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the Pirate Party all failed to score above the 5 per cent threshold needed to enter parliament.
The result is not only a victory, but "a gigantic triumph for the Chancellor". At close to 42 per cent, the CDU/CSU has achieved its best score since 1990. However, its current coalition partner, the FDP, will not be present in parliament for the first time since the founding of the Federal Republic in 1949.
