Friedrich Merz Elected German Chancellor After Second Vote/ Newslooks/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Morning Edition/ Friedrich Merz was elected Germany’s chancellor in a second-round vote after narrowly failing the first ballot, ending political uncertainty and setting the stage for a new conservative-led government.
Friedrich Merz Becomes German Chancellor – Quick Looks
- Victory on Second Try: Merz secures 325 votes, surpassing the required 316
- First-Round Stumble: He received just 310 votes earlier in a historic miss
- New Government Formed: Ends transition following Olaf Scholz’s resignation
- Coalition Composition: Center-right CDU/CSU allied with center-left SPD
- Far-Right Pressure: AfD calls for Merz’s resignation and new elections
- Global Attention: Vote comes ahead of WWII anniversary and amid Ukraine war
- US Tensions Loom: Trump administration openly critical of Germany’s leadership
- Economic Backdrop: Germany faces stagnation, defense boosts, and coalition strain
Friedrich Merz Elected German Chancellor After Second Vote
Deep Look
BERLIN — Conservative leader Friedrich Merz was elected Germany’s new chancellor on Tuesday after securing 325 votes in a second-round parliamentary ballot, narrowly clearing the 316 needed to govern the EU’s largest economy.
The victory came just hours after Merz suffered a historic defeat in the first round, when he fell short by six votes, stunning Berlin and shaking confidence in his newly formed coalition.
Merz becomes Germany’s 10th postwar chancellor, succeeding Olaf Scholz, whose center-left government collapsed in late 2024 amid infighting and economic stagnation. Scholz remains in a caretaker role until the official transfer of power.
“This is a mandate to restore Germany’s strength at home and credibility abroad,” Merz told lawmakers after the vote. “We move forward — united.”
First-Round Shock
Merz had been expected to win on the first ballot, especially since his coalition — made up of his center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the Christian Social Union (CSU), and Scholz’s Social Democrats (SPD) — holds 328 of the Bundestag’s 630 seats.
But only 310 members voted for him in the secret ballot, exposing cracks within the fragile alliance and sparking a sharp 1.8% drop in Germany’s DAX stock index as investors braced for extended political turmoil.
Though the defectors remain unidentified due to the anonymous voting process, the moment was unprecedented in modern German history — no chancellor candidate had ever failed on a first-round vote since World War II.
Coalition Tensions and Far-Right Pressure
Following the first-round stumble, AfD co-leader Alice Weidel slammed Merz’s leadership and called for his immediate resignation and fresh elections, describing the vote as proof that the coalition rests on a “weak foundation.”
AfD, which became the largest opposition party in February’s election, has been excluded from government talks due to Germany’s long-standing political “firewall” against far-right parties. But their influence — and visibility — has grown, in part due to open support from Trump allies like Elon Musk and U.S. Vice President JD Vance.
Vance’s meeting with Weidel at the Munich Security Conference drew sharp rebukes from Berlin. The tension intensified last week when Germany’s domestic intelligence service officially classified AfD as a right-wing extremist group subject to broader surveillance.
What’s Next for Germany?
Now that Merz has cleared the parliamentary hurdle, his new government is expected to revamp Germany’s economic and defense posture, particularly as it confronts the dual challenges of a sluggish economy and the war in Ukraine.
Germany’s GDP has shrunk for two straight years, and growth for 2025 is forecast at zero. The Merz coalition has pledged tax cuts, infrastructure investments, and defense modernization, fueled by a controversial loosening of debt limits.
Merz also inherits complex relations with the United States, where President Donald Trump’s administration has criticized Germany over defense spending, NATO contributions, and trade.
Trump — who once called for U.S. troop withdrawals from Germany — has now focused his administration’s firepower on undermining pro-European leadership in Berlin, while praising populist movements like the AfD.
Global Implications
Merz’s election comes on the eve of a symbolic moment: the 80th anniversary of Nazi Germany’s surrender in World War II. Lawmakers voted inside the Reichstag, still marked by graffiti from Soviet troops who captured Berlin in 1945.
The timing underscores Germany’s global responsibilities — not just as an economic powerhouse, but as Europe’s diplomatic anchor amid war in Ukraine, renewed U.S. isolationism, and internal threats from the far right.
Germany is now the second-largest supplier of military aid to Ukraine, and the fourth-largest defense spender globally, after the U.S., China, and Russia.
With a newly elected chancellor, eyes will now turn to how Merz balances foreign alliances, domestic cohesion, and coalition management — especially in a divided parliament and an uncertain global order.
