German SDP Vows to ‘Defend Democracy’ in Opposition After Heavy Election Defeat

“It is abhorrent that the AfD party, a disgraceful reactionary movement which recalls the worst of Germany’s past and should be outlawed, now has the ability within the German parliament to promote its vile platform”, he said.

SPD leader Martin Schulz has further hardened his opposition to a grand coalition with the CDU/CSU bloc, after he suffered a historic defeat on Sunday.

The Social Democrats have ruled out returning to coalition with Merkel, with many of its members now convinced it needs to return to opposition to restore its appeal to its core voters.

If the Social Democrats stick to that pledge, Merkel will effectively have only one option to form a new government: teaming up with the Free Democrats and the Greens in an alliance that has never yet been tried in a national German government.

With a fractured parliament of six parties, the process of forming a coalition government could take months.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has held onto her legislative constituency in the far northeast of the country.

The AfD did particularly well in East Germany where they came second overall but came first among men in the regions that compromised the former East German Republic (DDR).

“I heard the words from the SPD, but our opinion is that we should nevertheless remain in contact and talks”, said the chancellor.

The value of the euro dipped slightly on Monday morning following the surprise results of Sunday’s elections in Germany.

Addressing supporters, Mrs Merkel, who has been in the job for 12 years, said she had hoped for a “better result”.

“This is a big day in our party’s history”.

Mr Schulz’s Social Democrats were trailing far behind, with 20.5% support, down from 25.7% in 2013 and undercutting their previous post-war low of 23% eight years ago. “We want to learn German and contribute to the success of this country through work, simply to prove that she was right and her opponents were wrong”.

In the run up to the election, NPR’s Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson reports German voters were inundated with campaign posters, including ones from the anti-Muslim AfD party with the blunt slogan: “Burkas?” It scored well in a series of regional elections thanks largely to a growing public anger over Merkel’s welcoming policy toward refugees, particularly those from Syria and elsewhere in the Arab world.