The centre-left and centre-right candidates to replace Angela Merkel as German chancellor have both claimed the right to go ahead after inconclusive election results.
"We have a mandate to say we want to form the next government ... citizens want change," the centre-left SPD party's Olaf Scholz said on Sunday (26 September).
He promised a "good, pragmatic government for Germany".
The SPD narrowly won with 25.9 percent of the vote, according to projections on Monday morning...
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