Germany: Friedrich Merz wins majority in 2nd parliamentary vote to become chancellor

Friedrich Merz on Tuesday won the majority vote in the German parliament in the second round to become the country’s chancellor.

A total of 326 members cast votes in his favour in the second round — well beyond the majority mark of 316.

Earlier in the day, Merz suffered an unprecedented setback after he failed to win the majority in the first round of vote in the parliament. He received 310 votes in the first round.

Merz, the leader of Christian Democratic Union (CDU), had entered into an alliance with the Social Democratic Party (SDP) to stake claim to chancellorship. Between them, the two parties have 328 of the parliament’s 630 seats. This means that two lawmakers from the coalition still broke ranks.

More from World News

Friedrich Merz fails to become German Chancellor. So what happens next? Germany: Friedrich Merz fails to win majority vote to become chancellor

If Merz would have lost the second round as well, he would have been under immense measure to quit and make way for another candidate. If he would have lost, the vote would have gone into the third round in which whoever received the most votes — irrespective of whether they attained majority— would be elected chancellor.

Merz’s failure in the first round was a shot in the arm for far-right, neo-Nazi Alternative for Germany (AfD). The party has made considerable gains since the elections at the cost of CDU-SDP coalition and Merz.

Impact Shorts

More Shorts

‘The cries of this widow will echo’: In first public remarks, Erika Kirk warns Charlie’s killers they’ve ‘unleashed a fire’

Trump urges Nato to back sanctions on Russia, calls for 50–100% tariffs on China

Following Merz’s loss in the first round, AfD leader Alice Weidel said he should step aside and called for fresh elections.

“As the AfD, we set out to turn this country from its head back onto its feet. We are ready to take on government responsibility. And we call for reason to prevail. Mr Merz should resign immediately. The path should be opened for new elections in our country!” said Weidel.

The AfD does not just have considerable support in Germany but also has the endorsement of the Donald Trump administration of the United States , which has gone to the length of sparring with the German government to champion the cause of AfD.