The centre-right European People's Party (EPP) with German lead candidate Ursula von der Leyen is headed for victory in the European Parliament elections, initial figures from broadcasters ARD and ZDF showed on Sunday.
According to the trends published shortly before 6 pm (1600 GMT) the EPP could end with around around 180 of the 720 seats in the new European Parliament, a stable result compared with the 2019 election results.
The result is a boost for von der Leyen's chances for another term as president of the European Commission.
The figures were based on polls and projections.
The second strongest group in the new parliament remains the centre-left Social Democrats, who could end up with around 135 seats. They will be followed by the liberal Renew, which will slip to between 81 and 87 seats.
The far right Identity & Democracy (ID) is predicted to get around 70 seats, and the less radical but eurosceptic European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group would return just under 80 seats.
The Greens would lose significantly and end up with far fewer than 60 seats in the European Parliament.
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is counted among the non-attached parties, as it was excluded from the ID group shortly before the European elections.
Overall, right-wing parties are likely to make the biggest gains according to the figures.