It’s been said that German elections are usually dull affairs. Well, whether that’s been true in the past, it’s certainly not true this time – it’s bloody complicated.

The result Sunday 23rd, brought success for the CDU/CSU conservatives, with 28.6% of the votes and 208 seats, followed by the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) who won 20.8% and 151 seats.

The partners who make up the current red-green-yellow “traffic light” government all suffered losses – the SPD Social Democrats lost over 80 seats ending at 121, with the Greens losing 33 seats and securing only 85. The smaller Liberal FDP lost all 91 seats they held as they joined the BSW Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance in struggling to reach the 5% threshold to qualify for parliament, but in a unexpected resurgence the left party (Die Linke) won 64 seats.

To dig through the results, explain the acronyms, parse what difference the voting system makes, and explore the ramifications for us in the UK, Frances was joined by Ronja Endres, Boris Kanzleiter, and James Hoctor.

• Ronja Endres sits on the the SPD party executive and is co-chair of the Bavarian SPD. A proud trade unionist, she works at the PECO institute, where she helps train young people in sustainable construction and technologies of the future. With a country at the crossroads and more speakers to be confirmed, this is not one to be missed.
• Boris Kanzleiter is the director of the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung Athens office and was the director of the international department of the RLS until 2023. He is an active party member of Die Linke.
  
• James Hoctor is Project Manager at the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, London.