This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/europe/8277526.stm

The article has changed 16 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Merkel 'retains power in Germany' Merkel 'retains power in Germany'
(11 minutes later)
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been returned to power with 33.5% of the vote in tightly fought elections, exit polls suggest. Chancellor Angela Merkel has been returned to power in Germany, exit polls suggest, after her conservative bloc won 33.5% of the vote.
Mrs Merkel's conservatives may have enough seats to ditch her Social Democrat coalition partners and form a centre-right alliance with the FDP. Mrs Merkel's CDU/CSU may have enough seats to ditch her Social Democrat coalition partners and form a centre-right alliance with the FDP.
If confirmed, Mrs Merkel's win will be the first by an incumbent leader in Europe since the economic downturn.
Preliminary results are expected in the next few hours.Preliminary results are expected in the next few hours.
An exit poll for ZDF television gave the Social Democrats (SPD) 23.5% and the Free Democrats 14.5%. ZDF television's exit poll gave the Social Democrats (SPD) 23.5%, and the Free Democrats (FDP) 14.5%.
The BBC's Steve Rosenberg in Berlin says the result if confirmed would be a disaster for the Social Democrats (SPD), who could have their lowest share of the vote since World War II.The BBC's Steve Rosenberg in Berlin says the result if confirmed would be a disaster for the Social Democrats (SPD), who could have their lowest share of the vote since World War II.
Exit polls in Germany are generally considered to be extremely reliable. Exit polls in Germany, Europe's largest economy and the biggest member of the European Union, are generally considered to be extremely reliable.