Merkel stays as far right advances in Germany

With Angela Merkel's conservative party winning the most votes in the federal parliamentary election on Sunday, she soon will start tough negotiations to form a coalition government.

Merkel retains her fourth term as German chancellor as a far-right party, the Alternative for Germany or AfD, has won seats in parliament for the first time in decades with a projected third-place finish.

Final official election outcomes had not been confirmed by press time, but exit polls indicated that Merkel's Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian counterpart Christian Social Union won 33 percent of votes, down from 41 percent in 2013 election. That is a 70-year low. The AfD won 12.6 percent.