German election results point to three-party coalition

Significance

However, the result is overshadowed by the heavy losses her Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), incurred and a surge in support for the far-right populist Alternative for Germany (AfD).

Impacts

• Coalition negotiations will only start in earnest after the regional election in Lower Saxony on October 15.
• A CDU/CSU-FDP-Greens coalition means that the centre-left SPD rather than the AfD will lead the opposition in parliament.
• Neither Merkel nor the FDP are likely to use their political capital to push for a more accommodating German or EU stand on Brexit.