Friedrich Merz has officially become Germany’s new chancellor after a dramatic two-round vote in the Bundestag.
He failed to win an outright majority in the first round, marking a historic parliamentary setback, but succeeded in the second with 325 votes.
His CDU/CSU bloc, supported by the Social Democrats, narrowly commands a majority of 328 seats.
The initial defeat highlighted tensions within the coalition, raising concerns about future stability.
Merz now faces a turbulent political landscape, economic stagnation and the growing influence of the far-right AfD, which has become the largest opposition force in parliament.
