Europe must seek to “achieve independence” from the United States, Germany’s likely next chancellor Friedrich Merz said after his opposition conservatives won elections on Sunday, in a vote that also saw surging support for the far-right.

Provisional results confirmed that mainstream conservatives led by Friedrich Merz won Germany's national election​, while a far-right party surged to become the nation's second-largest.

Alternative for Germany (AfD) is now on course to win 20.5% of the vote, according to latest projections - but there is no way Friedrich Merz will work with it because of a long-standing political taboo against working with the far right, known as a Brandmauer - a firewall.

Germany’s economy is stalled and its politics fractured. But it sees an opening for a new chancellor to lead Europe’s response to a changing America.

Conservative leader Friedrich Merz has triumphed at Germany’s ballot boxes, paving his way to become the next chancellor. His win is of particular significance to Europe — the leader has vowed to strengthen the EU,

U.S. President Donald Trump hailed Sunday as a "great day for Germany" after an election in which the centre-right opposition won first place followed by the far-right AfD with its strongest result ever.

Germany's CDU/CSU conservative alliance won Sunday's general election election and the Elon Musk-endorsed far-right, anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party came second, preliminary results show.