There is a determination among all of Germany's main parties to keep that block in place - and the German public backs them up: 69% see the AfD as a threat to democracy, according to voters surveyed on Sunday.

Germany’s political system is set up to exclude extremists. Yet the country is waking up to a new political reality that has lurched to the right with the once outcast Alternative for Germany (AfD) party now firmly established in German politics.

The success of the Alternative for Germany, or AfD, is a sign of the times. Across Europe, far-right parties once on the fringe have gone mainstream.