Germany’s Social Democrats are under pressure to quickly revamp leadership as a role in a new government beckons, even though Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s party slumped to its worst election result since World War II.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is due to enter the history books as the country's shortest-serving centre-left head of government, after Sunday's general election delivered a historic defeat to his Social Democrats.

Germany’s conservative CDU/CSU bloc won the national election, with Friedrich Merz likely to become chancellor. The far-right AfD secured its best-ever result. Coalition talks will be complex, delaying key policies amid economic struggles and geopolitical tensions.