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69-year-old Christian Democrat who won the election in February And united with the Social Democrats to create most governments, he had to swear to the post on Tuesday after being expected to be formality.
Merza needed 316 votes in the parliament of 630 members. But it only secured 310, although there are 328 places in the coalition partners.
“It’s a shock,” said Hening Meyer, Professor of Tubingen University. “It has never been federally before. Of course, there are dissatisfied people.”
In the vote on Tuesday, 307 Bundestag members opposed Merza, which testified that five members of his future coalition had been switched by the parties because the opposition had 302 votes. Three members abstained, and nine were missing and one voice was invalid.
It would not be immediately clear if the next voting round, in which the Merz still requires the absolute majority of 316.
He can still be chosen by the chancellor in the following rounds if he wins more “yes” than the votes “no” but at the cost of his powers.
If the candidate is unable to win sufficient support for the parliament, the Social Democratic Democracy President Frank-Wolter Steinmeier may appoint another chancellor candidate or call new elections. Prior to that, Olaf Sholtz remains acting Chancellor.
Uve Jong, political scientist from the University of Tsera, called the vote on Tuesday a “big surprise”, adding that “it is obvious that Merz has opponents in the coalition.”
Its failure to be chosen by the Bundestag to strike the CDU leaders, who planned to start working with deep problems in Europe, which has suffered a year of stagnation in Europe.

Merz was due to a trip to Paris on Wednesday to meet with President Emmanuel Macron that he was to demonstrate his commitment to the Franco-German partnership.
“All Europe viewed Berlin today in the hope that Germany would restore itself as an anchor of stability and pro-European power plant,” said Gian Puglirin, a senior employee of the European Council for Foreign Relations. “This hope has been spoiled. With the consequences, our borders are exceeded.”
In the initial reaction to Alice Weidel voting, co -chairman of the extreme alternative to Germany, called for new elections, claiming that the unprecedented failure of the Merz revealed the “trick of the fund” of his future coalition.
European shares weakened after the news, striking by minimum, with the German Dax index decreased by 1.7 percent, and the wide SToxx 600 index decreased by 0.8 percent.
Holger Schimiding, Chief Economist of the Bernberg Bank, said the upset Tuesday was “significant” for the German economy.
Although he said that the dead could still be chosen, he added: “It shows that the coalition is not united, which could weaken its ability to pursue politics.”
Merz angered some within the more conservative wing of his CDU/CSU group, weakening the constitutional borrowing limit and starting the 1tn debt costs to modernize the country’s military and its aging infrastructure.
Lars Klingbel, co-chairman of the Social Democrat, who was supposed to take the post of Vice-Chancellor and Minister of Finance, also encountered internal criticism after his party suffered its worst electoral defeats, only 16 percent of the vote in February.
Additional Report John Smith in London
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2025-05-06 09:43:00