Andrew Marshall: While we wait for results from Germany...

Andrew Marshall is Managing Director of Cognito Media and a Camden Conservative Councillor

A few historical facts as we wait for results:

• If the AfD makes it into the Bundestag and the FDP survives, this will be the first Bundestag with six parties in it (counting CDU and CSU as one "Fraktion", or political group) since 1953. 

• Since 1949, the SPD has only beat the CDU/SPD on votes thrice:  in 1972 under Willy Brandt, and in 1998 and 2002 under Schroeder (the latter time by only around 6,000 votes nationwide).

• The CDU's 2009 result of 33.8 per cent was its worst result since 1949.  In 1976, Helmut Kohl got 48.6%, but still ended up in opposition to the SPD/FDP coalition.  Germany became an increasingly concentrated three party system in the 60s and 70s, before increasing fragmentation again from the arrival of the Greens in 83.

• The Chancellor has been CDU for 44 years in total since the founding of the Federal Republic, and SPD for only 20 years.