After suffering a stunning early defeat in the first round, Friedrich Merz, the conservative leader of Germany, won a thrilling second vote in parliament on Tuesday to become chancellor.
In the lower house of parliament, Merz, 69, won the secret vote with an overwhelming majority of 325 against 289.
He assumes leadership of a coalition that includes the center-left Social Democrats (SPD) of departing chancellor Olaf Scholz and his CDU/CSU alliance.
Later Tuesday, he and his cabinet were scheduled to be appointed as post-war Germany’s 10th chancellor by President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Merz is scheduled to travel to Paris and then Warsaw on Wednesday.
