The leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), the second largest party in parliament after Sunday's election, said Germany's likely next chancellor would be held hostage by left-wing parties that would seek to loosen tough fiscal rules.

Germany's mainstream conservatives won the country's national election, while a far-right party surged to become the nation’s second-largest party, according to provisional results following Sunday’s election.

Trump hailed the result as a "GREAT DAY FOR GERMANY," while the far-right AfD party that Elon Musk has championed made historic gains.

Elon Musk endorsed AfD, an anti-immigration party that just won the most support of any far-right party since World War II.

In spite of the Tesla CEO's best efforts, the AfD performed no better than had been expected when snap elections were called.

Polls are open across Germany as the world’s third largest economy chooses a new leader to guide it through an era of febrile immigration debates and souring relations with Washington.