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

German's Friedrich Merz has pledged to achieve "independence" from the United States after his centre-right alliance won parliamentary elections. Merz faces complex negotiations with smaller parties to form a government after ruling out cooperation with the second-placed hard-right Alternative for Germany (AfD).

German voters cast their ballots in Sunday’s election, with opposition leader Friedrich Merz claiming victory. Exit polls also indicate that Alternative for Germany, or AfD, is heading for the strongest showing for a far-right party since World War II.

Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg’s daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union.

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

The Christian Democratic Union and its allied Christian Social Union secured the largest share of votes in the German federal election, exit polls show.