The conservative CDU/CSU bloc emerged as the winner of Sunday's parliamentary elections in Germany, securing 28.6% of the vote, the dpa agency reported, citing preliminary official data released overnight from Sunday to Monday by the Federal Election Commission.

Germany’s centre-right CDU and CSU parties have won the federal elections with about 28.5 to 29 per cent of the vote according to exit polls, paving the way for CDU leader Friedrich Merz to become chancellor at a time of economic and political upheaval in Europe’s largest democracy.

Germany's conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its Bavarian CSU sister party are topping polls for the election on February 23 and are likely to lead the next government.