Transcripts For BBCNEWS Germany Election 2017 20170924

Colleague ros atkins in berlin for a special Coverage Programme of the general elections. Stay tuned. German elections. Hello, im rosa hoskins. Welcome to berlin and a bbc news special on the german election. In the next five minutes the polls will close, moments later well get an exit poll which has a track record of being accurate. Itll be the first indication of whether Angela Merkel will govern germany for a fourth term and whether she will continue as one of the worlds most influential leaders. The result is certainly not going to be the end of the matter. Unless polling has been wrong, no party will gain a majority, so this minute exit poll will fire the starting gun on detailed and Difficult Coalition negotiations. Angela merkel voted earlier in berlin, shes focused the effo rts earlier in berlin, shes focused the efforts of her Christian Democratic Party on families, a pledge to avoid tax increases and the importance of increasing german security. Above everything, though, the cdu and its leader have offered political stability. Something theyve highlighted that hasnt been present in some countries recently. On her 2015 decision to admit over 1 million Asylum Seekers, shes defended it, but she has said nothing like that must ever happen again. The cdus main rivals are the social democrats, the stb sdp. Theyve long been the biggest parties in german politics. The stb has had a tough campaign because its been a Coalition Partner with the cdu, which has made criticising government policy much harder. Its a Centre Left Party led by Martin Schultz, who until relatively recently was president of the European Parliament. He claims while in coalition his party has forced Angela Merkel to support a minimum wage, and offer a vote on gay marriage. But his main pledge to voters has been that he will address social inequality. He also insists germanys eu partners must share more responsibility for migrants arriving in europe. In a strange way this election is as much about who comes third as who comes first. It looks likely that for the first time six parties will be represented in the bundestag. If that happens, though six will certainly include the right wing party alternative for germany, which believes islam doesnt belong in germany. The top candidate has said the german integration minister should be dumped in her parents homeland of turkey. It has said that germans should be proud of what their soldiers have achieved in the two world wars. Joining me in berlin is Jennifer Wilson of die welt, and somebody from cicero magazine. What number will you be looking for in the polls . We dont expect big surprises, but there is one number everybody is looking at, the number of afd, alternative for germany. Polls tend towards more than 10 the last few days. Could be more. Some people think less, i dont know. To get into the bundestag, any party has to get above 5 . What about you, bastia . I will look to the oldest Party Germany has, the social democrats. They already have their lowest results eight years ago. Maybe this time its even lower. This might be a disaster the social democrats, although they had a great finish in the last few weeks. Good of you tojoin us, finish in the last few weeks. Good of you to join us, well carry on talking, of course. But it is now 6pm here in germany, which means the polls have closed in this german election. We expect, any moment now, an exit poll to give us the first indications of how this election has gone and to emphasise the result. This exit poll isnt the end of the matter, itll be the beginning of extensive Coalition Talks. Were getting some figures now. Lets just see pictures from the cdu headquarters. We understand their party in the exit poll has received 32 and a half percent, considerably down on the last election. The stb has scored 20 in this exit poll, also down on their performance. Both big parties appear to have taken a hit. The afd, the right Wing Nationalists at the centre of this story, they are being projected as having polled 13 and a half percent. If that is the case, its an astonishing result, putting them clearly as the third party in germany. Remember this is a party who have said is land does not belong in germany. The free democrats have been polling at 10. 5 . I was reading those numbers but next week and show you on the screen to give a clear indication of how this exit poll is going. This is the poll just released. How this exit poll is going. This is the polljust released. The cdu and its sister party in bavaria, csu, 32 , considerably down on what polling was suggesting, which projected 36 . Angela merkel may have a chance to continue as chancellor, but that is a political blow, well talk about that in a minute. There is much to digestible her main political rival, Martin Schultz, leader of the spd. 20 is a catastrophic result for the spd and places major question marks over where it goes as a party. On 13 , afd. Free democrats 10 . That will be welcome for the free democrats. They didnt get any representation in the bundestag last time, so they bounced back. Dubai, which emerged from the Old Communist Party in east germany, has achieved 9 . Die linke, which has emerged from the Old Communist Party. The greens also 9 . The reason the figures matter is that they will all fit into Coalition Negotiations. Lets bring in gavin lee, who is live with us from cdu headquarters. Im curious to know what the reaction is, gavin. About ten minutes ago there was cheering and whooping. They thought they had got some sort of result for they had got some sort of result for the cdu party here. But it hadnt come through. You can hear behind me at the moment some early cheering because in about five minutes time Angela Merkel is expected to be here. She will get some kind of speech, an indication first hand how she sees the result. I think its fairto she sees the result. I think its fair to say, go back four years, when the cdu and sister party, csu in bavaria, together got a1 of the vote, which was strong. This year, its been pretty consistent in the polls, 35 36 , not much room for margin. The only time she really did, theyre in mind this is a woman whose popularity, personal popularity, is more party chile popularity, is more party chile popular than the party. It dipped after the migration crisis in 2015. It rose when she was more welcoming. She was saying Wir Schaffen Das we can do it. Its enough, surely, to talk about being in a position powerful enough to be able to lead a coalition. It makes the coalition more interesting, for what type its going to be, what effect that has an europe without the uk, a germany that has to discuss with brexit. To give you a sense of whats going on, what you cant see, because im packed at the back of the cdu all, a glass building. On every level, four mezzanine levels, all packed with people, glass in hand, waiting for mutti, mother, as they affectionately call her, to speak. Its not the big cheers we had four yea rs its not the big cheers we had four years ago at the moment, its calm, they are waiting to hear first hand from Angela Merkel. Thank you very much indeed, gavin. Critics of Angela Merkel would say over recent yea rs Angela Merkel would say over recent years shes been very good at spotting popular policies of other parties and taking them on as her own. She may need to do that in coming weeks because shes going to need some help forming a Coalition Government. Help may come from the social democrats. Lets bring in damien mcguinness, live from their headquarters. This is a very disappointing result for the spd. Thats right, certainly no clapping here, just glum faces. If these initial exit polls are correct, 20 , thatis initial exit polls are correct, 20 , that is the crucial mark. If the spd slips under 20 , it means its more 01 slips under 20 , it means its more or less over for slips under 20 , it means its more or less overfor this spd in slips under 20 , it means its more or less over for this spd in this form as a major party in germany. It could be the worst election result the german social democrats have ever had. Since the Second World War. It would be so disappointing for the social democrats. There are a number of reasons why Martin Schulz, Angela Merkels rivalfor chancellor, has done so badly. One of the main reasons is because hes been, the spd, has been thejunior partner in a coalition, a left right coalition. Angela merkel, as the strongest partner, has dictated the strongest partner, has dictated the agenda, and people say the social democrats, the Centre Left Party, so strong in german political traditions, has lost its identity. So there are a lot of people here tonight to say theyd like the social democrats to go back into opposition and not help Angela Merkel run another government. Because theyd lose their identity even more, it could be the end of the social democrats. The other problem social democrats have had over the campaign, over the past four years, Angela Merkel is a very centrist politician. She is effectively stolen a lot of traditional left wing issues, from welcoming refugees to climate change, shutting down Nuclear Power stations. She has effectively stolen. For many centre left politicians there is little else to fight her on. Other issues as well. There are Difficult Solutions to them. Critics of martin shaw s save Martin Schultz say he didnt offer enough solutions and win enough support, shown by the result a night. If the final results slip into the teens, its a really bad news. About 20 would be catastrophic for the social democrats. Very sad atmosphere here, nobody clapping, just very glum faces indeed. Damien comer thank you very much. Glum faces at the spd. The cdu has plenty to think about, you suspect the mood is better at the alternative for germany, one of the alternative for germany, one of the most high profile politicians is speaking. Translation aggro i would also like to thank you all for the very hard Election Campaign we have endured. Translation but i think we now have a result that is tantamount to a party revolution. That is Alexander Gauland, pictures coming from the afd rally. It gives the germans and of a lot to think about. Lets speak to jennifer the germans and of a lot to think about. Lets speak tojennifer and bug, busy taking this in. Its not what the polls suggested, something quite different. Not really, were most surprised about the party of Angela Merkel, because that is a loss. Much bigger loss than expected. Its a defeat, i would say. We just got the information the social democrats will go to opposition. So there might be. The idea of a grand coalition with the two biggest parties working together isnt going to happen . Maybe, that the most important thing may be for the most important thing may be for the social democrats, to recreate themselves. What we also see is a weakened chancellor merkel. Because she lost 9 . Yeah, this might be a ha rd she lost 9 . Yeah, this might be a hard time for her as well. Everything looks like there might be a grand coalition, but a grand coalition of three or four parties. For all of the people watching outside of germany we should explain these two parties for a while could poll up to 80 of all votes. They arejust over poll up to 80 of all votes. They are just over 50 now. Poll up to 80 of all votes. They are just over 5096 now. Yes, in the last election, 2013, they already had, i think, last election, 2013, they already had, ithink, together, less than 60 i think. A long time the grand coalition granted stability. Cdu got a little bit more left. Now, its an immovable monolith, people are fed up immovable monolith, people are fed up by immovable monolith, people are fed up by nothing moving in policy. Stay with us, please. If yourejust turning on, on bbc news, the story of the exit poll in this german election, cdu has gained the largest share of the vote but with only 32. 5 , well down on where the cdu was polling, down on where Angela Merkel was in the last election. Their biggest rivals have also had a disastrous election, social democrats have polled according to this exit poll 20 . No doubt which party is going to be taking the headlines. Alternative germany, the right Wing National party, is expected to pick up 13 and a half percent, represented by a great number of members of parliament in the bundestag. That will be for the first time. Lets bring in damian grammaticas. Im imagining a party is underway at afd headquarters. You can probably hear. You saw a second ago. Its pretty noisy in here because were packed into a nightclub in the former eastern berlin. The leaders havejust finished speaking but as those results came in we heard a cheer every time each party result was announced because as soon as they saw the first result, the cdu result, the Angela Merkel party result, the Angela Merkel party result, below expectations, i think their hopes started to rise. When they saw the afd coming with that result projected, coming in at about 13. 5 from the first exit polls, there was a big cheer here. Its the top end of expectations i think they had. There were chants of afd and when the leader, Alexander Gauland came on stage and started speaking, they were chanting his name, gauland. He said to the borders, were going to hunt Angela Merkel down and reclaim our country. Damien comer to explain to everyone watching, there is no possibility of the afd being invited into a coalition . No. All the other parties have said theyre not going to work with the afd. What this result could mean to the afd, the big thing for them was coming in as third Biggest Party, according to the exit polls, if they are borne out in the result. That is a huge result for them because it puts them in a position where inside the parliament in the bundestag, they will have a block of seats. But also influence and, potentially, quite a lot of influence, if there is a grand coalition between the two biggest parties, chancellor merkels party and the spd. As weve had before. It would make spd the official opposition, chairing budget committees and debates, having a lot of speaking time. From their point of speaking time. From their point of view it would be interesting how this pans out, where it leads them. Weve heard already from the other figures on the stage speaking, they feel they have a bit of momentum behind them. This party formed four yea rs behind them. This party formed four years ago. Now entering parliament, the first time weve had far right members of the National Parliament here for decades. And they want to capitalise on that now. There will bea capitalise on that now. There will be a lot of people drawing a line between this projected result and that decision of Angela Merkels in 2015 to allow over 1 million Asylum Seekers to coming to germany. 2015 to allow over 1 million Asylum Seekers to coming to germanym certainly seems to have been one of theissues certainly seems to have been one of the issues which has helped the afd. The afd has rallied support around. It was explicitly mentioned by one of the Party Members who spoke here in the last few minutes. She said Angela Merkels refugees welcome slogan of this policy, she said, will be consigned back to the extremes where it came from. One of the afds main Party Platforms is anti immigrant, they want to close down borders, titan access to asylum in germany. Tighten up access. Repatriate failed Asylum Seekers. They are very tough on that. They identify the partys surge in support from last time elections we re support from last time elections were held to a focus on this issue of refugees and immigration here in germany. Damien comer for the moment, thank you very much indeed. Use across town from me, im by the Brandenburg Gate as we digests an extraordinary projected result in the german election. This is the projection we have in this exit poll. The story of this is the big two parties suffering and smaller parties making games. There is the cdu and csu, Angela Merkel leading the cdu. 32 , below the last election, but also below where the cdu has been polling. The last poll yesterday rejected over 36 . Under one third of germans have supported Angela Merkel. The spd had a bad election last time. A worse election this time. Martin schulz left brussels, walked away from his job as president of European Parliament to fight this election and it hasnt worked out for him. If we look at the smaller parties, die linke on the smaller parties, die linke on the left, 9 up from last time, the greens, 9 up from last time. s, up from last time. And the right wing afd, alternatively germany, 13 . To gain representation in the bundestag you have to pass 5 . The afd has never done that before. Bastian, it feels like a moment where german politics as fundamentally shifted. Sure, its historic in many ways. The first time we have a party which is right from the conservatives, with 13 . Yes, its interesting. It, yeah, a lot of people think about what will happen now because the speech of the alternative for germany is rough. As you said before, they speak of proposal. Integration is not the topic from them. For the last six months, the narrative has been Angela Merkel took a huge risk in 2015 by allowing so took a huge risk in 2015 by allowing so many Asylum Seekers into germany, but actually it was a risk that worked out, it hasnt damaged her. But it looks like perhaps, after all, it has. Yet, i mean we all know that a big part of the success of the afd has to do with immigration, to do with 2015 and what happens then. For sure. But to do with 2015 and what happens then. Forsure. But at to do with 2015 and what happens then. For sure. But at the same time i think analysis has to go behind that, as to look at who, in fact, voted for the afd. And why. And what this kind of fear about all the refugee crisis and so on has done with society in germany. I think its not that easy to say, Angela Merkel made a mistake and now she has to pay for it. What i might add is we have to look, there are 87 which voted for the immigration thing, because the afd was the only party which was really an opposition to the decision in 2015, so this is maybe good news, whatever, but yeah. Despite this being a disappointing result for Angela Merkel, shes still very likely to continue as chancellor. Im looking through the numbers here and thinking, shes going to have to make huge compromises to create a coalition to lead. I mean the process of Coalition Building in germany is usually quite a long one. Its very early to say anything about it. But yes, there is a tendency towards a so called Jamaica Coalition. That wont be easy, lets put it like that. Its a speciality, to make compromises, of merkel. We shall have to see. Stay with us. Were going to turn to Angela Merkels party now, because weve got these pictures coming in from the cdus headquarters. All of those people awaiting Angela Merkels arrival. I should say, this may be interesting to you watching bbc news channel in the uk, unlike the uk where there is one exit poll, here in germany there are more than one. We have a separate exit poll from zds, one of the public tv channels in germany, giving slightly different figures to the ones weve been referring to. Zdf. They predict the cdu and csu to be over 33 , spd to be on 21 and the afd 113, be over 33 , spd to be on 21 and the afd113, not huge variation, but a helpful reminder the one exit poll does not necessarily mean that will be the precise result. It backs up the broader narrative of a better election for smaller parties and a poor election for the two big parties. Well have to wait for the exact details. The first confirmed results come around 3 30am in germany. Were in for a lot of Coalition Negotiations in germany. Lets pause and have a look at how these coalitions are constructed. If germanys political track record is anything to go by, its parties rarely emerge from an election with an absolute majority. Alliances are the norm. So what are the Main Coalition options on the ballot this time . First up, the historically tried and tested option of the grand alliance, the black red of the cdu, christian democrats, and the spd, social Democratic Party. If the coalition Angela Merkel has run into macro for three terms. The current government is blend of this coalition along with the cdu sister party, the christian socialists. Next, the black, green, yellow, the so called Jamaica Coalition. Its the cdu, ftp, free Democratic Party, and the green party. Weve seen jamaican alliances in a number of District Councils and at local level, but such an alliance would be a huge step on the national stage. The greens may find their left leaning environmentalist members not feeling a caribbean spirit with the business leaning conservatives. The black, red, green, referred to as the junior coalition, sometimes the afghanistan coalition, sometimes the afghanistan coalition, is the spd, cdu, and greens combined. To date, only one state has gone kenyon. Then there is the Traffic Light Coalition of red, yellow, green, stp, fdp and green party. Today only one traffic light has been successfully turned on, in one of germanys western states last year. Of course with 38 parties and several independent candidates running, there are a few more possible alliances with some caveats. The right Wing Nationalist afd is the new colour on the palate, yet none of the other parties are willing to work with it. While the socialist left, die linke, is a colour still being tried out. Everybody getting their calculators out to work out what kind of coalition might work for Angela Merkel. She looks favourite to form a coalition and continue her time as chancellor of germany. There will be some very difficult discussions and a reminder if you are churning in it is projected that her cdu party will be the Biggest Party. If you are just tuning in. Potentially only a third of germans have voted for Angela Merkel. Lets speak to a couple of other guests joining me Angela Merkel. Lets speak to a couple of other guestsjoining me in berlin. Laura hofstetter, political scientist, and christian of the centre for european reform. Some people said this election wouldnt be interesting and it was all predictable. It hasnt turned out that way. Definitely not, its very surprising to see cdu and spd to be losing so many votes. But at the same timei losing so many votes. But at the same time i think its really a reflection of the fact there is a general dissatisfaction with some very big problem is that were facing. Sustainability problems, including, perhaps, the future of mobility, the future of energy, that were not talking about. There was a general feeling both of the big parties are not really tackling that. There havent been politicians showing new visions of where were going. There was a feeling of all being the same. I fully agree, i think the spd did not offer enough in terms of change, what it would do differently. I think the really surprising shocking result is that the cdu came in so low, that was unexpected. I think there is no celebration at cdu at the moment. There will be people watching us all around the world, particularly the uk, wholl be surprised because on the International Stage Angela Merkel is widely revered, seen as a giant, really come of international leadership. Clearly the enthusiasm is not shared by a lot of germans. Leadership. Clearly the enthusiasm is not shared by a lot of germanslj do is not shared by a lot of germans. do think actions in 2015 during this long summer of migration have lost her votes in her party base. Shes gained a lot of respect with a lot of people who are not in her party base, those people maybe havent voted for her now, shes lost votes in her party base. I also think the grand coalition also always strengthens the smaller parties because it seems there was a Big Coalition between spd and cdu governing without any real opposition. Voters felt they wanted to strengthen the smaller parties. The greens have gained, the liberals have gained, the fdp. Social inequality was a big issue in this election, the German Economy is known for performing very well, gdp going up, unemployment at record low levels, but clearly for some people it isnt working for them. Exactly, i think it isnt working for them. Exactly, ithink in it isnt working for them. Exactly, i think in part the vote for the afd is in part a story of those left economically behind, but only part of the story, the only part of the story is those culturally left behind, so we shouldnt make the case for the afd only game because of economic inequality, the left party for example, the social democrats, are the more natural parties for these people. What can you say when they feel culturally as well as economically left behind . Its true afd voters usually are not economically well. Worse off. They are also not less educated contrary to stereotypes. But they live with a subjective feeling of being at certain risk of losing what theyve gained. That is more of a predictor. They are also often living in the countryside. Experiences of many People Living to the cities, Public Services taken away, but is not running, schools closing, there is a feeling of being left in the countryside. In terms of who Angela Merkel will have to cut deals with, one possibility is she could work with the free democrats and the greens. Those two parties are so far apart. They claim to be very far apart. They claim to be very far apart. If you look at the voters of the greens and fdp, they are not that different, at least in the middle ground. But the social democrats, the continuation of the grand coalition, weve heard stp politicians saying we cant do grand coalition any more, this is a vote against it, which aims to end. It seems, at least at the moment, a Jamaica Coalition as we call it, the greens and the fdp, is the only option left. Stay with us, ifjust joining us, im live with you in berlin. Lets show the projected results in todays german election. Here you have the details, cdu and its sister party csu, projected to reach 32 , which is a major surprise. We were expecting over 35 from Angela Merkels party and its sister party. Spd led by martin shaw s new things it would be tough. It had a difficult campaign. Martin schultz. Its been in coalition with the cdu. The left, die linke, very popular in what was east germany. The greens more popular in the west, 996. The greens more popular in the west, 9 . The free democrats will be delighted with that. Last time in the election they didnt even reach 596 the election they didnt even reach 5 and theyve reached ten. The story that most people are focusing on, the afd, alternative for germany, a right Wing Nationalist party, 13 . Lets translated into what the bundestag could look like. The way the german system works there isnt a fixed number of seats in the bundestag. There have to be at least 598. Bed of bait we can safely say they wont all get non , though it would make quite an empty bundestag. Lots have messaged me online to say how does the system work. There are just under 300 constituencies. Voters have a vote for their local constituency member of parliament but they have a second vote for a party. Those party votes get added up and have to be represented in the bundestag. The overall make up of the bundestag has to represent the National Party votes. Its complicated but essentially you end up with at least 598 members of parliament and, potentially, quite a few more. How didi potentially, quite a few more. How did i do, did i explain that ok . Very good. We could end up with a huge parliament, up to 700 members. It could be the case. Quite an expensive way of organising things. To some people think its not the best system . To some people think its not the best system . I think there has been worry about it, because then we are talking about proportional representation and we have these overhanging seats, they are called. In the end the bundestag isnt proportional any more. And there has been claims it isnt constitutional. They think reforms have always stuck when it comes to which state has to give up seats in order to reduce this, so its always been a very difficult issue. The time to reform this was the last period when we had a grand coalition, they could have done it because those are the two major parties in the german system. They couldnt agree so now we have to live with this. Its been interesting reporting from berlin and in cologne, how many people have been frustrated there havent been longer term plans from the big parties . There havent been big ambitions. Do you think they both made a mistake in not being more radical in what they were offering voters . Clearly yes, that is the point. Really they are just looking ahead of themselves for putting on the details. I mean, if we are looking at the tv debate, it was quite obvious they were talking, not about mobility in general. Also i have to say, i see a little problem with the journalists. Im all ears. The first hour of the debate was full question concentrated on migration and it seemed like tell portation was the most single problem germany is facing. Im just most single problem germany is facing. Imjust going most single problem germany is facing. Im just going to interrupt you because Martin Schulz, leader of the social democrats has stepped out of the headquarters. Theyve had a disappointing day of the projections if the disappointing day of the projections if the projections are to be believed. Let us hear what he has the say. Applause. Dear comrades, dearfriends, dear friends of social democracy, thank you very much. Thank you very much for the courage and the energy that you have expressed right now. Today isa you have expressed right now. Today is a difficult and bitter day for social democracy in germany. I dont wa nt to social democracy in germany. I dont want to be beat about the bush, we have not reached our objective. We have not reached our objective. We have not reached our objective not even after the election with failure and now the german bundestag, we have delivered a fantastic Election Campaign. We have reached a number of people, less fewer than we were hoping for, but those who gave our vote and their trust to us, they can rely on us, they can rely on us and oui rely on us, they can rely on us and our working for their objectives in the next term of office. I would like to thank all the voters whove given their confidence and trust and i would like to thank all of the supporters who were out and about in the streets, in the squares to support us who conducted our Electoral Campaign on the internet. I would also like to thank all of the collaborators here in the Election Campaign headquarters, all of the candidates who were standing for election, turned out at the rallies and who were giving and rendering their support with great enthusiasm and i would like to thank in particular the young social Democratic Party organisation. I know sometimes events can happen very quickly. We have not been able to mobilise and retain our normal electorate. We have been able to achieve great things over the last term of office. Ourfriend here have been very successful and very responsible in shaping the politics over the last four years in this grand coalition. On social arrangements and pensions, i remind you of wedding and marriage arrangements of people. This is town to us. The strength of the afd part write for the first time with them, therell be a far right wing party in the german bundestag. This is a seizure and of course the acceptance of one million immigrants, it was almost destined to divide our country and its divided us too much. Its a gesture of acceptance, welcoming and humanity. That was misinterpreted by people and we have not been able to convince people that germany is Strong Enough in order to tackle this challenge and we, and the spd in the social Democratic Party we should reorganise social cohesion. For social democracy, the rule applies that we are going to work by oui applies that we are going to work by our words and our principles and, given the election result, i e the strength of the far right Wing Extremist Party, we are the democratic Opposition Party, we are the Opposition Party of democracy. Over the next few weeks and months, dear guests and friends, we are going to use the time in order to reposition, to realign ourselves again. Ifeel that reposition, to realign ourselves again. I feel that now given that i have just been elected as the Party Chairman, ithink have just been elected as the Party Chairman, i think it is my task, it is my obligation in order to design this process as the Party Chairman together with the entire party, the spd. The cooperation between the spd and cdu is coming to an end. Applause. Dear guests, the grand coalition has lost a vote and has lost support. The exit polls show that there will be another majority that is viable and possible. It is obviously also the case that the so called Jamaica Coalition, a coalition of cdu, fdp and green party may have a majority. And on saying this year in very clear terms sdp. I was fighting this Election Campaign in order to replace the incumbent federal chancellor that has been you believe successful and hence i have given the reck men digs to the rest of the party, the spd, to withdraw from the grand coalition and to two into the opposition. Unsuccessful. We were all in agreement to make this step to form the strongest Opposition Party in the night of this election result and in order to bear the responsibility that the voters has fifthen to us. Has given to us. We now make enormous effo rts given to us. We now make enormous efforts in order to read a good election result in lower saxony. That is our next task, that is our next task, namely that we close ra nks next task, namely that we close ranks again, we work shoulder to shoulder, the entire party, that we need to it is can yous the election result without any ifs and buts. And we need to take the appropriate time in order to discuss the result and with all of my experience and all of the time that i have available, im going to make myself available. We have gained so many new Party Members and supporters. Over the last few weeks, we have experienced a great deal of enthusiasm for our objectives and our ideals. These are the ideals of socialjustice of democracy and freedom and the social justice really should be the overarching theme for any government for germany over the next few years and decades and that should be the overarching theme when the new Government Takes Office tomorrow. Dear comrades and friends, ladies and gentlemen, let me conclude with and gentlemen, let me conclude with an underlying basic statement this party has experienced a number of bitter hours. This is another bitter hourin bitter hours. This is another bitter hour in the history but social democracy has prevailed in the adversity of a far right Wing Extremist Party showing its ugly face this. Is our task that we build up face this. Is our task that we build upa face this. Is our task that we build up a strong opposition. Thank you very much. Applause. Studio that is Martin Schulz of the social democrats reacting to what has been a disappointing german election for him and his colleagues. There was a lot to digest in what he said. He pointed out that the party didnt appeal to its base. He talked about the need for the social democrats needing to reimagine what they are. It was interesting that he felt the grand coalition had damaged the spd and seemed to be indicating that he wanted the spd to be the main Opposition Party here in germany. Remember, if the spd were to work with Angela Merkels cdu party, that would leave the right Wing Nationalists afd as the biggest Opposition Party, something Martin Schulz seems clearly keen to avoid. A couple of other things to meant. Alexander garland, a high profile figure in the afd said the battle isnt over, dont come with anything that could later trip us up. We have heard the afd saying, well hunt them, with reference to those whore going to remain in power. If you are turning on, we are still waiting for exit polls based on confirmed votes. The exit polls we are referring to at the moment are based on asking voters as they are based on asking voters as they are leaving the booths which way they have gone. So as we go along, they have gone. So as we go along, the exit polls are going to get more and more accurate. The free democrats have projected a vote of 10 . Their leader is speaking now. He could be crucial in terms of what Coalition Germany ends up in. For this country and we are going to accept this responsibility. Applause. Dear friends, dearfriends, in this dear friends, in this election dearfriends, in this Election Night in 2017, we are casting back our minds to the Election Night of 2009 and the ensuing events. We also remember the Election Night of 2013 when voters gave us the very, very ha rd when voters gave us the very, very hard task in order to regenerate. We are standing in the line of a very strong tradition and we have regenerated ourselves in this tradition. We are going to use the strength and were appealing for courage and for strength. We have gained in terms of consistency in ourideas gained in terms of consistency in our ideas and nobody was able, in order to persuade us to swerve away from our path, and this is the path which we are not going to give up when we take our seats in the parliament. Ok. Applause. There we have the leader of the free democrats reacting to what has been a good day at the polls for him and his party. If we follow all of this along, we start to understand the significance of this result. If the fdp were to go into coalition with Angela Merkels cdu, along with the greens, the fdp has been very strong on saying it doesnt want, for instance, an overall budget for the eurozone, its also been critical of some of the other potential further integration that the European Union may seek to do. Little earlier, we heard from president macron who said look, if the fdp are involved in Angela Merkels coal ilks, its a disaster for the eu Angela Merkels coal ilks, its a disasterfor the eu reforms im proposing, so this is the potential significance. If f the social democrats are saying, we want to be an Opposition Party, that leaves by far the most freedom demolition, put all the parties together and its ha rd all the parties together and its hard the see how Angela Merkel will emerge from that coalition, pushing as hard as e manuel macron is for radical reform of the European Union and how it works. Well have to see how it all plays out. Lets turn back to what is undoubtedly the story of this projected election result, the afd, right Wing Nationalists coming in as the third Biggest Party projected to get 13 . One of the most high profile representatives of the afd spoke earlier. I would representatives of the afd spoke earlier. Iwould also like representatives of the afd spoke earlier. I would also like to thank you all for the very hard Election Campaign that we have endured. But i think we now have a result that is tantamount to a party revolution. Nora and khristian are still with us. Nora and khristian are still with us. What does the afd want . Nora and khristian are still with us. What does the afd wannm nora and khristian are still with us. What does the afd want . It came out as a single issue party. Then in 2015 it became a right Wing Populist Movement that very strongly was against migration and wants germany to be this sort of fantasy of the people. In terms of what it can practically achieve in opposition, what is going to happen in the bundestag . If you look at the afd programme, its a combination of weird claims and wishes. What they wa nt to weird claims and wishes. What they want to do is to provoke and to provoke the parties and the establishment and Angela Merkel. Thats what theyve done and this is what they are going to do in parliament as well. It struck when covering the dutch elections, the Freedom Party is all about him though, he is the party, the afd has more of an infrastructure though . Yes, i would say so. Its already got representation in is it 13 of the 16 state members of parliament . So right. It is already. I mean this was also expected because it had already had successes. It seems like they are not going away quickly. Its not a one man show, its a party that feeds off lots of frustration which the migration crisis brought to the forefront so it has been building its bases in different states throughout the winning of elections and now its with 89, that was the latest projection, 89 mp5, a large number in the bundestag. Do you think its managed to shift the dialogue around migration and islam . Definitely. What we have also witness suicide many parties try to shift right a little bit in order to get voters back from the afd so the whole political discourse has definitely changed and also hate speech in jemplny has increased germany has increased. We also see in the streets the certain taboos that have been broken, they are not taboos any more. Its easy to see the language the afd chooses to use is different to other political parties. Today they are saying they are going to hunt down the new government. That is not how the other parties are talking . No, this is not how german politics works in general. Its not as combative and confrontational. The afd adds a level of confrontation to it thats not seen. Im going tojump in here because here is Angela Merkel now. Dear friends, dearfriends, ladies dear friends, ladies and dearfriends, ladies and gentlemen, there is no need to beat about the bush. The cdu would have hoped for a better result. But we must not forget that we are looking back after an extraordinary challenge. But nevertheless, we have achieved the strategic objectives of our Election Campaign. We are the strongest party. We have the mandate to form a government and we will form the new government. Applause. Therefore, i would like to thank foremost, all of the voters who have given us their confidence, their trust, and i would like to thank all of the supporters and helpers who have fought with us, particularly those supporters from the youth organisation, the youth party organisation, the youth party organisation, we have fought a Brilliant Campaign, its been marvellous and weve had a lot of fun. I would like to add that we have had 12 years of governmental responsibility and it is, of course, doesnt go without saying that we have yet again become the strongest party, but of course theres another important moment which is the entrance of the afd in the German Parliament. We are going to conduct a very thorough analysis because we wa nt to a very thorough analysis because we want to regain those voters who may have voted for the afd. We would like to understand their concerns and worries and anxieties, but of course wed also like to conduct a good, sensible policy style. Dear friends, over the last few months, we were fighting for a germany where we lived gladly and well. We know that now we have to set the signals that this is also going to be the case in five or ten yea rs going to be the case in five or ten years time, this of course includes economic prosperity, that means to say that we need to work for a just and a free country. That of course means that we need to bring together all of the European Union countries that we need to fight against the courses of migration and we need to find legal ways in order to fight against illegal immigration, but the topic of security is also a worry and concern for people, just as much as prosperity. These are the overarching themes that we are going to look at over the next few weeks and months but today is a day when we can say that we have now a mandate to assume responsibility and we are going to assume this responsibility calmly and talking with our partners, of course, from my heart once again thank you very much indeed, the Election Campaign was really very well conducted. Applause. So there is Angela Merkel giving a reasonable assessment of what the exit polls are saying. She acknowledged this was not the result she and her colleagues at the cdu we re she and her colleagues at the cdu were looking for, but emphasised that this is the fourth election in a row where they will be forming a Coalition Government. She said, we are still the Biggest Party, and thatis are still the Biggest Party, and that is something to be proud of. However, she said, clearly, there needs to be an inquest into what has happened, particularly with reference to the afd, the alternative for germany, the right Wing Nationalists. She said, we need to have a thorough analysis of why people voted for them. Interestingly, she said on that issue of immigration, she needs to talk again to the European Union so the responsibility for migrants coming into the eu is shared, one of the big controversies around the 2015 decision which allowed during 2015 decision which allowed during 2015 and 2016 over a million Asylum Seekers to come into germany, is that people felt germany was disproportionately carrying responsibility and the numbers back up responsibility and the numbers back up that feeling. What we have heard in this Election Campaign has been hearing Angela Merkel and Martin Schulz of the social democrats saying this cant happen again. We need the responsibility shared across the eu. That though is a lot easier said than done. Theres been disagreements since 2015 among eu members, theres no sign of that disagreement resolving itself. Well have to see how Angela Merkel gets on. Let us have a look at an exit poll that we have been digesting for the last few minutes. An unexpected and important result. Theres the cdu, the christian democrats on 32 . That is significantly down on what was projected. The spd having a tough campaign, theyve been in a Coalition Government with the cdu forfour Coalition Government with the cdu for four years, they struggled to differentiate themselveses from the christian democrats, so its proved they have polled 20 down on the last election result. The smaller parties will largely be pleased. One of the radical parties wants to abolish nato, for example. The free democrats, they are against the eurozone wide budget, theyre for tax cuts. Germany has a surplus, by the way, so it can reduce tax cuts relatively at 10 . The alternative for germany, the party which says islam does not belong in germany. 13 . Lets translate that into the kind of representation we may see in the bundestag behind me. Cdu and csu, 217. Its worth us stopping to consider that the third Biggest Party now in germany is one that says islam does not belong in germany. Back in march, when it was the dutch election, the second Biggest Party in the netherlands, with the Freedom Party which makes a very similar point saying mosques need to be closed, islam is not compatible with dutch culture. This is resonating with a significant mile north. Joining me live here in berlin is the Us Ambassador to germany from 19972001. Thank the Us Ambassador to germany from 1997 2001. Thank you for your time. Nice to be here. What did you make of that . Actually the polls the last couple of days more or less predicted this so i wasnt surprised. Im not happy obviously, i dont like to see right wing being so strong, but the fact is for the other parties, its more or less what everybody was expecting. You say its in line with the polls. Angela merkels numbers are down. In fa ct before Angela Merkels numbers are down. In fact before we continue talking, lets go to the afd headquarters because one of their most significant figures is talking now. Lets listen in. Parliamentary lets listen in. Parliamentary politics lets listen in. Parliamentary politics and to also make sure that we are able to act, that we have a politics or a style of politics that is agile and able to act. And this is what we we re able to act. And this is what we were fighting for. The first thing that we are going to do, this is something that i noticed a moment ago over the debates, over the post election coverage, all of the post election coverage, all of the other parties are only talking about me, me, me, and they are only talking about persons, we, the afd are talking about content, political positions, we are talking of the positions, we are talking of the position for which the voters have given us their trust. This is going to be the first thing that we are going to be delivering on. Applause. We are going to look in detail to establish a committee, an Investigation Committee that is tasked with looking at the legal breaches that mrs merkel has done. We have arrived in order to stay, hence, let us accept the post, let us hence, let us accept the post, let us accept the mandate with dignity, and with care, and to all of the new members of the parliament, please be aware of the responsibility of the mandate, vis a vis the trust that the voters have given to us. We owe this trust to the voters and we will deliver. Thank you very much. That is alice weidel of the alternative for germany, celebrating the result with all of her supporters. But telling all of those who will become members of parliament in the bundestag, which is in the building behind me, that they have a responsibility to carry out the wishes of those who voted for the afd. Lets carry on talking to the ambassador, the Us Ambassador in the late 1990s. Early 2000s. Alice weidel saying we offered more concrete policies than the other parties. Is that they are . It is in one unfortunately, they were anti emigrant, against refugees, against the European Union, in favour of no longer apologising for germanys past. The only person she had standing next to her was Alexander Gauland, who is a very ha rd Alexander Gauland, who is a very hard right Wing Nationalists. That was obviously symbolism for waters. They will be a difficult party. You have them in holland and other places as you pointed out. The key thing is not to worry about which direction germany is going in, but to know that germany is joining the other countries in being less predictable and stable, in having the smaller parties, the ideological parties, taking a bigger share of the ward. There is an irony in that Angela Merkel rested her entire campaign on stability. She said, trust me, i will make germany stable. That is not what this election has offered up. Compared to others, it is still stable. She has been an officer 12 years. For any Democratic Party to be in power after 12 years is unusual. Not even good, to tell you the truth. She pointed that out. Germany still has stability but it is coming undone. These parties will represent lots of different issues that germany has supported in the past. It will make them a more difficult partner in europe, probably a more difficult partner with the United States. We will be seeing a different kind of consciousness in germany, regardless of whether Angela Merkel as chancellor or not. They say that about boxers, they never know until they have gone on too long until one fight comes along and shows it up. Do you think what we have seen here is that the cdu failed to show a vision that reaches beyond the next four years . They did not try. Looking at france and the United States, they decided that the best thing to do was to say, no experiments, we will carry on. Her biggest slogan was, isnt it nice to live in germany . It is, but that does not strike a chord with anybody. They were worried that if they got it wrong they would hurt themselves more. The real loser in this disaster is the badge showing of the spd, the traditional social Democratic Party, like the labour party in britain. There are 20 is awful. It shows that the centre left parties are having a very hard time in the new world. The democrats in the United States and the spd here. I want to ask you about an interesting comment by a politician, member of the European Parliament, a cdu politician. He said, we have to ignore afd in parliament. Do you think that is a worthy tactic . I do not think it is a good tactic. The fa ct not think it is a good tactic. The fact is that the afd voters are mostly people that used vote the cdu. Some of them for the spd as well. If you ignore them, they will start screaming. You need to take on new dishes and say why it is still important to be in europe, why it is important to be in europe, why it is important to be in europe, why it is important to have a humane refugee policy, why it is important that germany should not forget its past. Ignoring them will lead to confrontation. We should keep emphasising that despite this being a disappointing result for Angela Merkel, she will almost certainly be chancellor for a fourth term. While your president has bent has demonstrated his more isolationist tendencies in the team into the white house, many people are keen to put Angela Merkel as the potential replacement as the leader of the free world. Never a role she has been keen on, but how do you see this result influencing her position internationally . The germans do not wa nt to internationally . The germans do not want to be leader of the free world. It isa want to be leader of the free world. It is a position that is too big for them. But it is safe to say that Angela Merkel has become the position has become the politician in the world that stands for liberalism in world affairs. She is certain to continue to do that. She will have some problems. Her party is one third from bavaria. That is a conservative part of the country. They will be very upset by the vote of the afd. They will push to the right. It will be complex. Germany will take a lot of study in the years to come. Ambassador, thank you for your time. Referring to bavaria. Just explain, the christian democrats have a sister party in bavaria called csu. It is projected to sled ten points since the last election four years ago. If that is the case, it means that your massive degree bavaria has walked away from what the cdu, the csu offers germany. Lets bring in gavin lee. I wonder what people made of Angela Merkels speech . What is really interesting, just the sense that there is a little bit of deflated spirit here. They are the party with the most votes. Angela merkel came here and there were shouts of her name. There are people filling up the floors here. She said, thank you for voting, we need to win back the trust from the afd. Those that voted for the far right. Lets look at the fault lines. There are voices within the cdu, people i have spoken to that said, did she do enough . There was a big cdu poster, everywhere in berlin and the big cities, enjoy your summer, think about the vote in the autumn. She went on a hiking holiday. The leader of the spd, Martin Schulz criticised herforehead. She was making sure she was ready, she did not want to bea she was ready, she did not want to be a half break or lose the zeitgeist. People had moved on. That happened with helmut kohl. There is perhaps we can support and what you do about the afd. There are two meg wishes, one is the afd. One of the senior cdu members said we have to ignore the afd. If they are going to get handed mps in the bundestag, we cannot be working with them on anything. The other thing, and you will see a lot of this, the Jamaica Coalition. Angela merkel will have to work with two unlikely bedfellows, the free democrat party, a business man, Christian Linder, former amateur racing driver. He has doubled the support of the party in the last few years from nothing. That is die linke. They were the supporting Coalition Party in 2009. They dropped out altogether. He has spoken about how he does not like emmanuel macrons vision of europe. He was the most favourable when it comes to talks on brexit, more so than Martin Schulz, which might be important in discussions in the future. In crimea, is he believes that they need to move on from it. It caused a storm in the media in germany. Then yedder green party, who has talked about Angela Merkels refugee policy. It was criticised as being too harsh. They want to make the borders more open. It seems that the borders more open. It seems that the most likely collective is the green, black, yellow, the Jamaica Coalition. It took Angela Merkel 2. 5 months last time. She has weeks to work out how they make that work. It is probably worth emphasising that well the kind of compromises you are describing seen extraordinary for some people watching in countries where they do not have those compromises regularly between major parties, Angela Merkel, in recent years, has proved herself to be remarkably flexible when it comes to policy. Yes, she is. There are a couple of things to bid in mind with Angela Merkel. We have a guest. Forgive me. We will have to use my microphone. This is the former swedish prime minister. I will give you this to talking to. You have observed tonight. Tell me about what you think this does for Angela Merkel, for germany and the afd as well . For Angela Merkel, she will be the leader of germany, the leader in europe for the next few years. That is essentially good news but the permission of the government will be tricky. No question. The social democrats have decided to go in opposition. I can understand that. They have had the worst election result ever in their history. The gaps between the greens and the fdp and the csu will require statesmanship on a level that perhaps only she is capable of. One key point is the idea that Angela Merkel said she did not want to be, this half dead right, in her words. Do you think that maybe it was too much to do another term, or was it migration, the issue of the popularity of the afd that has hurt today . Big coalitions are always tricky, they always give room for small opposition parties. That happens everywhere. I think the drama of the 2015 refugee crisis, the crisis is over, there are no refugees coming here, practically, but the drama is the. That has given rise to the protest vote, afd. appreciate sharing the microphone. The party of Christian Linder are the most favourable towards brexit. What does this mean for brexit discussions . Is this potentially a good thing, if there is a Jamaica Coalition with the fdp . good thing, if there is a Jamaica Coalition with the fdp . I do not think it makes much of a difference in terms of brexit discussions. The german position is fairly firm. I do not think it will be affected by coalition discussions. It will be affected much more by Coalition Talks inside the uk government. That isa talks inside the uk government. That is a separate issue. Thank you for talking to me. I really appreciate it. I know youre a busy man. The former swedish prime minister, is extraordinary, the story here. What will happen next . Angela merkel has to pick up the party and win back the afd supporters that have gone that way. Thank you very much indeed. A reminder that one of the senior figures in the afd spoke a little while ago, talking about the afd excepting its mandate with dignity. I will let you decide whether that applies to a quart that is being widely shared by another senior figure in the afd, saying that were going to hunt them, were going to ta ke going to hunt them, were going to take back our country and our people. Clearly the afd believes this is the start of a grander process. Lets switch from the cdu to the spd, the social democrats, the second Biggest Party according to the exit polls. Damien mcguinness, that is putting a positive on things . Yes, here at the spds Party Headquarters there is certainly no partying going on, now celebrating. The headquarters are emptying out. Buying me on the stage, Martin Schulz, Angela Merkels rival to become chancellor, he has given a speech. His dreams of becoming the next chancellor have been shattered. With exit polls of around 20 , which would be the spds worst result in the history of the party since 1919. If the exit polls become official results, this is actually worse than anyone could have imagined. Spd Party Members and supporters knew that tonights results would be bad. Martin schulzs campaign did not get off the ground, but few people expected it to be this bad. When Martin Schulz got up on stage to address party followers, he said he would no longer Work Together with mrs merkel in the government. That was the only point in the evening tonight in spd headquarters where the crowd cheered. That is because during the last four years, the spd, the centre left, has been on a grand coalition with Angela Merkels cdu as thejunior coalition with Angela Merkels cdu as the junior partner. Many people say that is why the spd has done so badly tonight. They have lost their identity and being pushed around by the cdu and not been able to stand up the cdu and not been able to stand upfor the cdu and not been able to stand up for their left wing policies. Angela merkel has stolen quite a few of the left themes and policies that they would usually fight for, such as environmental protection, support for refugees and migrants. Over the past campaign, Martin Schulz has really struggled to explain to voters what is different about the social democrats. That is why tonights result has been so catastrophic. People are really disappointed. Martin schulz is in fighting mood. He says he will lead the party in opposition. I spoke to the party in opposition. I spoke to the mayor of berlin, just now. He is a bigwig in the spd. He told me that Angela Merkel need someone else to work within government because the spd will not work with her any more. They are in fighting mood and they wa nt to they are in fighting mood and they want to stand up against the government. They want to become the official opposition. They do not won the afd to do that, the new anti migrant party. The afd to do that, the new anti migra nt party. They the afd to do that, the new anti migrant party. They want to stand up and get their identity bag isa stand up and get their identity bag is a strong left wing force in germany. Thank you very much indeed. We are losing the last of the days light here in berlin but its going to be a long night across germany as the counting goes on. We wont get confirmed official results until perhaps three, or 3. 30 confirmed official results until perhaps three, or3. 30 in confirmed official results until perhaps three, or 3. 30 in the morning. Jennifer wilson and british airwayses yen browns are still with me. We havent spoken to you for the last half hour. Im sure you have been speaking to politicians, what have they been saying . Angela merkel saying she wants to win back votes from the other voters, the afd voters. This might be difficult because shes now got a coalition with kind of a Left Wing Party like the greens or she might have. So this might be really difficult to get the voters back from the afd. I think everybodys not very surprised but a little bit shocked by the success of the afd and the former east lender because they are the second Biggest Party now after the second Biggest Party now after the cdu. They have around 21 i think. Let us be clear, this isnt just a party that is doing well in what was east germany. It was also doing well in south west germany, for example. It is. As we heard the numbers from bavaria, the sister party of cdu lost i think 10 for the exit polls, so. That seems to me another piece of evidence that that 2015 decision during the peak of the migrant crisis has had political consequences . It depends because just taking bavaria, political consequences . It depends becausejust taking bavaria, for example, the governor, has been very critical of Angela Merkels policy and how she handled migration crisis, so he was more or less putting the csu, the party between cdu and afd. But, he lost now and the afd is not that resolved in bavaria as in the east, for example, or in the whole country. So i think things are a little bit difficult. I think yes, we were thinking about it and talking about it a lot in the last few months, about who is voting for the afd and he is not and why theyre voting. I think thats not a simple narrative. I think the problem is that the migration crisis is also a projection. People do projection on that topic but there are other topics which are also high level in the campaign. As we saw in the last two weeks, there was something about care, the health system, about jobs and something about care, the health system, aboutjobs and income but the other parties didnt manage it, didnt manage to get it. All the other voters, maybe we need to, yes, we need to have a lack on that. Yes. I think its much projection on this topic. How this topic. H ow releva nt this topic. How relevant is the history on unification here. Dielinke and adf is doing better in the east, the englands, the free democrats do better in the west and its going to better in the west and its going to be the parties doing well many the west looking like they are going to end up in the government again . The greens. The left has lost a lot of votes in the east, the former east. There has been a start in talking about what went on during the process of unification. Culturally, why do the people feel like left behind . That is a discussion that has only started in germany right now. Both of you stay with us, please. There is a standard, shall we say, procedure with german politics which is that during the campaigns, the parties insist they are not interested in compromising, theyll only go into coalitions if they have their red lines respected and then when the result comes out, inevitably, and this isnt a criticism, we see more flexibility. Well, during the campaign, the liberal party, the free democrats, the fdp were adamant they had a number of red lines they wouldnt work on. The leader mr lindner explained hes open to a coalition. Dear friends, coalition. Dearfriends, in this coalition. Dear friends, in this election coalition. Dearfriends, in this Election Night in 2017, we are casting back our minds to the Election Night of 2009 and the ensuing events. We also remember the Election Night of 2013 when voters gave us a remember the Election Night of 2013 when voters gave us a very, remember the Election Night of 2013 when voters gave us a very, very ha rd when voters gave us a very, very hard task in order to regenerate. We are standing in the line of a very strong tradition and we have regenerated ourselves in this tradition. We are going to use the strength and we were appealing for courage and for strength and we have gained in terms of consistency in ourideas gained in terms of consistency in our ideas and nobody was able, in order to persuade us, to swerve away from our path. This is the path which we are not going to give up when we take our seats in the parliament, ok. There is a man and a party who may, i say may because negotiations still need to happen, may end up in a coalition with Angela Merkels cdu and with the greens. Well have to see. Im also seeing, for the bavarian public broadcaster, mm24 is describing the result for Angela Merkels sister party, the csu in bavaria as a debacle. If you look at how the exit polls are projecting this result at the moment, you will see perhaps the reason theyre using that word. The csu seems to lost far more in bavaria than the cdu and csu have in the country. Illjust ill just reiterate illjust reiterate as we bring up the projections for the seats in the bundestag. There is no possibility of the alternative for germany ending up in alternative for germany ending up in a coalition regardless of the fact that its come third. The cdu and the spd have been explicit and said we are not interested and, to be honest, the alternative for germany is not sought to be part of a coalition, it says its going to be a strong opposition. Next let us see some of what Angela Merkel had to say at cdu headquarters a few minutes ago. Iwould minutes ago. I would like to thank foremost, all of the voters who have given us their confidence, their trust and i would like to thank all of the supporters and helpers whove fought with us, particularly the supporters from the youth organisation, the youth party organisation. We have fought a Brilliant Campaign and its been marvellous and we have had a lot of fun. I would like to add that we have had 12 years of governmental responsibility and it is of course, it doesnt go without saying that we have yet again become the strongest party. But of course, theres another important moment which is the entrance of the afd in the German Parliament. We are going to conduct a very thorough analysis because we want to regain those voters who may have voted for the afd, we would like to understand their concerns and their worries and anxieties, but of course wed also like to conduct a good and sensible policy style. Applause. Dear friends, over the last few months, we were fighting for a germany where we lived gladly and well. We know that now we have to set the signals that this is also going to be the case in five or ten yea rs going to be the case in five or ten years time, this of course includes economic prosperity, that means to say that we need to work for a just and free country. That of course means that we need to bring together all of the European Union countries that we need to fight against the courses of migration and we need to find legal ways in order to fight against illegal immigration but the topic of security is also a worry and concern for people just as much as prosperity. These are the overarching themes that we are going to look through over the next coming weeks and moves but today is a day where we can say that we have now a mandate to assume responsibility and we are going to assume this responsibility calmly and talking with our partners, of course. From my heart, once again, thank you very much indeed. The Election Campaign was really very well conducted. Applause. The two giants of post war politics in germany in terms of parties have been the christian democrats and the social democrats. There have been times when the two parties together have polled close to 80 . In this election, they are projected to get just over 50 , so it gives you an idea of the degree to which german politics is diversifying and its given the social democrats plenty to think about. Martin schulz, the leader, did not duck that point. Im saying this in very clear terms. I was fighting this Election Campaign in orderto i was fighting this Election Campaign in order to replace the incumbent chancellor that has been u nsuccessful incumbent chancellor that has been unsuccessful and hence i have given the recommendation to the rest of the recommendation to the rest of the party, the spd, to withdraw from the party, the spd, to withdraw from the grand coalition, and to two into the grand coalition, and to two into the opposition. We were all in agreement to make this step to form the strongest Opposition Party in the night of this election result in the light of this election result, and in order to bear the responsibility that the vote, has given us to. The social democrats projected to get 2021 of the social democrats projected to get 20 21 of the vote depening on which exit polls you look at. The alternative for germany, the right Wing Nationalist party is projected to get over 13 . A reminder that the afd believes islam does not believe in germany, one of its knost high profile figures said germans have reason to be proud of what their soldiers did during the first and Second World War and they have said, this goes back a couple of years, that in some circumstances, it would be reasonable to shoot migrants trying to come in to germany. So this is a party which is operating towards the extremes party which is operating towards the extre m es of party which is operating towards the extremes of the political spectrum here in germany and its exceeded expectation. We are getting more details of how. 21. 5 of societiers are projected in the east to have voted for the afd. This is also interesting, just finding out here that 27 of men in what was eastern germany are projected to have voted for the alternative for germany, thatis for the alternative for germany, that is ahead of Angela Merkels cdu party. Lets talk with jennifer and bastien about that again. If that is the case, if men in east germany are now voting for the afd more than Angela Merkels party, we are looking at some significant shifts . Yes. I mean, actually its not a surprise, because as i mentioned before, it was clear that there were problems there, it was clear that there are a lot of people in the former east whore not very, lets say, former east whore not very, lets say. Happy former east whore not very, lets say, happy with the situation in germany. A few days ago i spoke to the minister for integration of saxony. She is meant to be the minister of integration. She turned around her main issues, and she now says her main issues, and she now says her Main Objective is to integrate the people from the east. I think the success of the afd is a symptom of something going wrong. A feeling of lots of people that theyre being left behind. As you said, it is a shift. Maybe we also need a shift in addressing voters. Because i am just saying that people in eastern germany i maybe neo nazis, things like that. This does not solve the problem. That is the thing. We need to have a closer ear to them. People the east maybe more critical than in western germany. They learned under a different system. They had the dictatorship in the past. Maybe they are more critical. They need to learn how to use that critical voice. Do you imagine this result stings for Angela Merkel . She is from what was east germany. Her part of the country is, if not rejecting an entirely, rejecting harding park . That is the problem. They think that she should be one of us, but she is against us. That is the feeling that lots of people have. She is not addressing them, she is not addressing them, she is not addressing them, she is not addressing the problems of the east. She is behaving like there were no problems. That is more difficult. You normally see me cups with the chancellor during the campaign. We call it the voters arena. Angela merkel is confronted with real problems. She is astonished and she does not know how to manage that. We had a caregiver who was really insisting on her. She was like this. There are problems. Shes good at handling things, but she needs the narrative of the people in east. Thank you for the moment. Once again, look at the most up to date exit poll projections that we have. We are continuing this bbc news special on the german election. The cdu, led by Angela Merkel, projected to ta ke cdu, led by Angela Merkel, projected to take 33 , along with its sister party. Bid in mind that the free democrats have been critical of proposed eu reforms by emmanuel macron. That could be relevant if they end up in government with Angela Merkel. The alternative for germany, the party we have been discussing, on 13 . These are projections, but if the figures turn out to be right, this is how the bundestag will look. In the past parliament, the alternative for germany had no seats, none whatsoever. It will have 87. The free democrats had no seats. It will have 69. Both parties will be looking to use those seats as best they can, the alternative for germany in opposition. We will see what the free Democratic Party do. Lots of people are wondering if they will get together with the greens and Angela Merkel end of the cdu and form what is called a Jamaica Coalition. One that the afd has done better than expectations is because of one of its leading candidates, alice weidel. She spoke earlier. The first thing that were going to do, this is something that i noticed the moment ago, over the debates, over the post election coverage, all of the post election coverage, all of the other parties, they are only talking about me, me, me. We, the afd, we are talking about content. We are talking about political positions, the position for which the voters have given us their trust. This is going to be the first thing that we deliver on. Applause we are going to look in detail to establish a committee, an Investigation Committee that is tasked with looking at the legal breaches that mrs merkel has done. We have arrived in order to stay. Let us accept the post, let us accept the mandate, with dignity, and with care, and to all of the new members of the parliament, please be aware of the responsibility of the mandate, vis a vis the trust that the voters have given to us. We owe this trust to the voters, and we will deliver. Thank you very much. The projected election result is a complicated one, but i suspect the two things which will be focused on more than any other, first, a fall away for the proportion of the vote that Angela Merkels cdu party is picked up. To put this in context, in the last election the cdu along with the csu. Over a1 of the vote. Current projections are for 33 , which is a significant fall. The alternative for germany, which last time butjust alternative for germany, which last time but just below alternative for germany, which last time butjust below 5 , which meant it did not get into the bundestag, now predicted to get 13, some exit polls saying 13. 5 . Significant shifts in german politics, which eve ryo ne shifts in german politics, which everyone is trying to understand. I should emphasise, these arejust projections. We will start to get exit polls based on actual votes, rather than questions to voters as they leave. Lets get the analysis of the former Us Ambassador to germany, from 1987 2001. Of the former Us Ambassador to germany, from 19872001. You still live here . I have lived here for quite awhile. This is a country that you know well. Angela merkel, the leader, she has been extraordinarily successful by any measure. Do you think this result leaves her diminished to any degree . think this result leaves her diminished to any degree . I do not think so. This result is two things. There are some big changes. The refugee thing was difficult. Donald trump is difficult for every politician in europe. But also, she has already been chancellor for 12 yea rs. Has already been chancellor for 12 years. In my country, this would be illegal. After 12 years, people start getting tired of you. Shes probably happy with what she got and she is happy that the fdp bidwell and the greens. The movie might better than they had hoped, but it is not the disaster, she can handle them. She is not slipping, but after 12 years, she is probably pretty tired of being chancellor. 12 years, she is probably pretty tired of being chancellor. I have spoken to quite a few analysts and voters that think having any leader for16 voters that think having any leader for 16 years is not helpful to the vigour of political discussion. Do you agree . Yes, in the United States, we had won four term president and we change the constitution so it could never happen again. What happened with mrs thatcher. After a while people got tired of. Politicians have a short half life and mrs merkel is near the end end of hers. The fact is, there was not anyone else who people thought would be a logical goode successor. Angela merkel has been talking about the need for an enquiry. Martin schulz is said we need to reimagine what the social democrats are. Do you get the feeling this result will speed up a process that was going to happen anyway . I think so. Process that was going to happen anyway . Ithink so. If process that was going to happen anyway . I think so. If you look at the things going around going on around germany, if you look at what germany considers to be the pillars of strength over the last 25 years, since the end of the cold war, eve ryo ne since the end of the cold war, everyone of them is eroding. Germany has to think about a new approach to own existence. Things change slowly here and i think this election will be an important push for those who wa nt to be an important push for those who want to change things. That was an interesting phrase, saying it needs to look at the nature of its own existence. What are the areas of its existence. What are the areas of its existence that you think need to evolve . Existence that you think need to evolve . If you look at how germany built its existence, first europe, second the United States. Thirdly, an understanding with russia and forth, a strong economy. The economy is still strong, but the european economy is shaky. Russia and the United States, and europe, they are all open questions. The great stability, the stability they have lived with for so long, those pillars are starting to tremble. This election is a sign of that. It is not a major people but a sign of that. You can see that even the chancellor will try to be a little bit more adventurous, i hate to use that word, more forward looking than in the past. In terms of germanys attitude to the world around and particularly europe, clearly the brexit vote was britains thing, you have become too close to this organisation and these countries, we need to step away and look at our sovereignty. I am need to step away and look at our sovereignty. Iam not need to step away and look at our sovereignty. I am not suggesting you can make too many comparisons with this vote, but do you think that the europe first, germanys second approach, that some people would see Angela Merkel has pursued, does that need to ship . It is going to shift. Ever since the brexit vote, every prediction, everyone that everyone has made, it has been wrong. Everyone thought this would be boring. It was not boring. It is a big up evil. It is notjust germany, europe, britain, it is everything. I have lived here a long time. I know lots of people. I hear people complaining all the time. This is your scientific analysis, i met a retired cdu politician at the supermarket yesterday morning. He made it clear to me that he was going to vote for afd . What were his reasons . Shes he said that Angela Merkel only speaks in slogans. Shes not doing anything. We need someone shake germany. I have to add that this person was eight years old. Germany never changes rapidly. Now it seems not to be changing. When you have got used to them not changing, then the change. This is what is happening. We all said this was going to be boring, i know we are seeing it is not so boring. You do not get much prior warning in germany. It stays boring and all of a sudden, you say, how did that happen . I do not want to overdo this. This is not a dramatic total change of direction election, but it is an important signal to everybody that they have got to wake up. I am going to have to leave it there. Ambassador, thank you for the moment. We can go back to damian grammaticus, who is live with us on this bbc news special act of the afd headquarters. Bring us up to date. Yes, we have had a party year. The Party Leaders have come on stage and giving speeches. They have been welcome. There is a small group of activism members who are alongside all the cameras, and the attention now focused on the afd. We have heard those leaders delighted by the result, and gunning very much for Angela Merkel, saying that the leader, the leader saying, Alexander Gauland, saying that they would hand mrs merkel down. They said that they would focus on the issue of refugees and reverse the refugee policy that they see in germany. Alice weidel, they see in germany. Alice weidel, the other leader, saying that they wa nt the other leader, saying that they want a commission to look into what she calls mrs merkels reigns in accepting this influx of refugees into germany, one million plus people. They are focusing on this message that they want to be seen as the opposition inside the bundestag. The afd believe that this result is because they have been distinguished from the other parties by being a genuinely different different voice in german politics, breaking the consensus mould of the other parties. One more question for you. One of the more eye catching phrases that the more eye catching phrases that the afd is used in the last hour or so is that it wants its land bank. What does that mean in practical terms, what is the afd suggesting it would do if it were in charge of germany . Well, they have focused very much, since the refugee crisis, on this whole issue of immigration, refugees, is land. They want a closing of germanys borders to refugees. They want tougher policies on rejecting Asylum Seeker claims. They said islam is not compatible in any way with germany. They want a tougher line on that. They will have a voice in parliament, 90 odd seats, and they say they will use that to push those ideas. Outside on the street there is a small group of very vocal and hostile protesters from left wing parties. They have been shouting, outside, saying that the afd has nights is in its party and they do not want to accept this. They say that no refugee should be denied asylum in germany. There is a gition opening up in german politics, that is an indication of the importance of this result, the first time far right nationalist party back in the German Parliament in decades, at least since the 60s here, the afd will now have a platform on which it can speak and its voice will be heard and will have to be heard in debates in parliament, in the procedures in parliament, whatever sort of Coalition Mrs merkel martials, whether the afd is the official opposition or is one of the opposition or is one of the opposition parties in parliament, it now has a role and will be a factor in all of those debates. Someone explained it to me, saying think of the way the green party 25 years ago got into politics in germany and started to influence things and now their ideas have spread far and wide, this could be the beginning of the afd getting into this and the right wing ideas getting into politics too. An official position represented in the bundestag in those sorts of terms. Its a major tremor through german politics what has happened here. Damien, thank you very much indeed. While damien was talking there and damien is inside the afds election gathering, the pictures i was showing you is what was happening outside. There is a protest. We have seen outside. There is a protest. We have seen reports of hundreds of protestors who object to the policies presented by the afd. Armed police are also present as that protest twos on. That is in berlin. If you are just protest twos on. That is in berlin. If you arejustjoining me on protest twos on. That is in berlin. If you are justjoining me on this bbc news special on the german general election, let me show you where we have got to with the projections, the most up to date poll we have and this is not what we we re poll we have and this is not what we were expecting. This is Angela Merkels cdu party, along with its c sister party, the csu. Not great for the spd for Martin Schulz on 20 . The others all upping their vote on last time. This is one of the stories of this election, the diversification of german party politics. Take those numbers, assume theyre correct, they may not be but exit polls in germany have a good track record and this is how the bundestag would look, the alternative going from having no representation in the bundestag, to having 87 representatives. Lets bring in the bbc correspondent in germanyjenny hill who is with me here in berlin. Plenty to digest . Indeed. This election is going to go down in the history books, no question, for two reasons. The far right is going to be sitting in the German Parliament for the First Time Since the Second World War. Theres a real change of tone at the substance of german politics. That surprise result from mrs merkel is a disaster. She was on course to win, shes managed to do it, shes secured that fourth term. This is her worst ever election result and her worst ever election result and her conservatives are not going to be happy. Tempting to speculate of course as to the reasons, i think what we are seeing here is mrs merkel being punished for her refugee policy, for opening germanys doors in 2015 to hundreds of thousands of migrants, atd have capitalised on that. I think theres Something Else going on here as well. I think mrs americales campaign saw this might be a teenager but very late on in her campaign. Ithink teenager but very late on in her campaign. I think theyve realised a lot of people at home have been thinking, im not going to get out and vote, they were worried about this, mrs merkel herself urged voters to mobilise. Perhaps we are seeing the fact that they havent heeded her call. If shes to get a majority government shes going to have to make changes. I was looking at the coalitions, but its the jamaica with the greens and free democrats . Exactly. Its going to be an interesting new era for german politics. What is worth talking about, afd while theyll not be in the coalition, they are going to be loud. What we are going to be hearing in the bundestag is unprecedented debates, a boisterous tone in what parliament. Bear in mind the bundestag is somewhere which prides itself on being able to achieve consensus and compromise, a gentle achieve consensus and compromise, a g e ntle style achieve consensus and compromise, a gentle style of politics. That is all going to change. We have had the afd talking about hunting down the government. This isnt language we normally hear in german politics . Its not but its going down well. Ive been on the campaign trail as you have and speaking to voters out there who feel forgotten by a centrist political system but also whore angry with mrs merkel about the refugee policy. A lot of the voters dont only from places where there are migrants but they are fea rful there are migrants but they are fearful about where this country is going and afds managed the speak to the people, somehow communicate with them, get them on side, and what we are seeing is an unprecedented shift in the way this countrys going to be governed. What i found interesting, in the last few weeks, mrs merkel has been more explicit that what happeneded in 2015 wont be allowed to happen again. But leerily that didnt resonate with enough voters . Shes had to strike a difficult balance. On the campaign trail, one becomes across frequently people who admire mrs merkel for her stance, saying she did the right thing, we dont want to see it again. Shes been unapologetic never been apologetic. That works as a message. Shes had to really chase the right. It hasnt worked. Shes trying to make that point again on the campaign trail but its not done enough. There might be people watching in the uk or elsewhere who think of germany as being a prosperous place, somewhere where unemployment is at record lows and gdp is going up and think, why are there so many dissatisfied people. What is your thought on that . Two things. The gap between rich and poor is growing here. So there is hardship out there. Secondly its more about fear. In a recent press conference afd talked about in their words the fact that one cant go to public places, particularly women forfear public places, particularly women for fear of public places, particularly women forfear of being public places, particularly women for fear of being attacked by people whove new aalived here. Afd has managed somehow to get across a message that germany is not a secure country economically or socially. That is something which really plays on the fears of people, particularly in germanys old east where thai experienced so much change that they are fearle of more change, that is something that comes across a lot when you speak to people. The politics of fear is very difficult for any Mainstream Party to counter, so for any Mainstream Party to counter, so mrs merkels speeches on the campaign trail have focussed very much on the economic success of this country. She talks about the future, about how to meet the challenges of globalisation, a digitalised economy wherejobs no longer globalisation, a digitalised economy where jobs no longer can globalisation, a digitalised economy wherejobs no longer can be guaranteed in traditional fabbing wherejobs no longer can be guaranteed in traditionalfabbing i haves for example, thats not something people out there want to hear. I think too, when you speak to people out and about, there is a sense of boredom. People want change. Its not because they think sometimes they think mrs merkels done a bad job but they call it merkel tiredness, there is no real alternative, shes unrivalled, Martin Schulz didnt get anywhere so theyve gone to the far right. L word about brexit. I can count on one hand how many conversations ive had prompted by people here. Its not been a big issue in the campaign. If we were to end up with ajamaica campaign. If we were to end up with a jamaica coalicsics, how campaign. If we were to end up with ajamaica coalicsics, how might campaign. If we were to end up with a jamaica coalicsics, how might that ininfluence the german governments approach to it . My sense is that it wont change at all coalition. Germany is always going to put europe first and the fdp is more business focussed, sure, but when you speak to Business Leaders out there, business organisations, they all say the same thing, actually we value the integrity of the eu more than the trade relationship with britain. Important though that is. Ive spoken to countless mps about this. There is a real sense here that perhaps people in britain are counting on something to change after this election that mrs merkel was waiting for the election to go away before she focussed on this. Nothing is going to change. Germany is very keen that the eu puts forward a united stance. I dont think we are going to see any real significant shift in position. Thank you very much indeed. Angela merkel leads the Biggest Party, according to the most recent exit polls we have. This has not been a good day for Angela Merkel as she heads into her fourth term as chancellor. Her party has lost significant ground, and on top of that, for the First Time Since not far after the Second World War, right Wing Nationalists will be in the bundestag. We are going to have continuing coverage of these projected results of course on bbc news but let me show you some of the key moments of the day. Hi, there. Its been a mild day. Temperatures a little higher than they were yesterday. We have had a fair bit of cloud across western parts. This has been rain bearing cloud. Central and Eastern England we have had sunshine and the skies have brightened at times in Northern Ireland. Even if you didnt have the sunshine, temperatures were on the mild side. Where the sunshine came out, a number of spots got up to 22 degrees, four celsius above normal for the time of year so its been a pretty warm late september day. Overnight, a band of rain will continue to push east across scotland, england and wales. The rain is probably going to be patchy at times and, across the western side of the british isles, as we get clearer skies working in, particularly to Northern Ireland, well get some dense patches of fog forming here and perhaps some murky conditions spreading into wales and South West England as well. Here is the chart for monday. The weather front will be bashing into High Pressure a cross front will be bashing into High Pressure across scandinavia and europe. The front will weaken and will tend to push back westwards through the course of monday. The rain already light and patchy through the morning. This strip of cloudy weather will sweep westwards as we go into the afternoon. Cloudy weather for scotland. For the West Midlands and parts of central southern england, still some spots of rain. Brighter skies working in across eastern counties of england. The best of the sunshine will be Northern Ireland once the Early Morning fog has cleared. Tuesday the weather front is still with us. This strea k of weather front is still with us. This streak of cloud across scotland, england and wales there, but better chance of good weather on tuesday. Better gaps opening up in the cloud. We are still on the mild side, temperatures between 16 and 20. But, well temperatures between 16 and 20. But, we ll start temperatures between 16 and 20. But, well start to see some change in our weather from the middle well start to see some change in our weatherfrom the middle part of the week onwards as atlantic weather systems begin to make way. Wednesday heavy rain into Northern Ireland, we could get over an inch here as we go on through wednesday. The risk of localised flooding and it will be windy. The east of this, still some decent temperatures. Then well start to see the weather change, rain at times later in the week. Becoming increase ghi windy and temperatures drop back to normal for the time of year. Thats your weather. With this is bbc news. The headlines at 7. Exit polls in germany show Angela Merkel has been re elected chancellor for a fourth term. We have now a mandate to assume responsibility and were going to assume this responsibility calmly, talking with our partners, of course. The far right, anti immigrant alternative for Germany Party is said to have done better than expected with a projected 13 . Ina in a moment we will be live on berlin with roz atkins where we will get the latest analysis of the exit poll, and to make former future Coalition Government