Germany's Social Democrats edge ahead of Merkel's conservatives in nail-biting election

The Social Democrats have gained a paper-thin edge over Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative bloc in the German Parliamentary election.

Germany's Social Democrats came first by a narrow margin in Sunday's national election, projected results showed, putting them in pole position to lead a government for the first time since 2005 and to end 16 years of conservative-led rule under Angela Merkel.

The centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) were on track for 25.5% of the vote, ahead of 24.5% for Merkel's CDU/CSU conservative bloc, projections for broadcaster ARD showed, but both groups believed they could lead the next government.