Five key takeaways from the German election

Friedrich Merz's conservatives have won, but the vote has thrown up some fascinating stories.

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Alternative for Germany, or AfD, has doubled its support in just four years to 20.8%, and has spread out from its support base in the east to become the second biggest political force in parliament.

Meanwhile, outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz's SPD had its worst performance in decades, only securing 16.4% of the vote.

Here are five key takeaways.

Look at an election results map of Germany, and you could almost have travelled back in time to the Cold War, when an iron curtain divided communist East Germany from the west.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx29wlje6dno

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