These include an economic malaise that has gripped the country in recent years, with its car-and-export-orientated economy looking vulnerable, as well as a thorny debate over immigration and integration that has seen the likes of the AfD rise in prominence and popularity.

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

Friedrich Merz and his party won, Elon Musk didn’t seem to move voters, and more lessons from an early German vote with big implications for Europe.