Friedrich Merz succeeded in his bid to become the next German chancellor during a second vote in parliament, hours after he suffered a historic defeat in the first round.

Friedrich Merz was elected as Germany's chancellor in a second-round parliamentary vote on Tuesday, after failing to secure the necessary support earlier in the day. Merz needed at least 316 of the 630 members of parliament to vote in his favor.

Hours after he suffered a historic defeat, Friedrich Merz was elected as German chancellor on Tuesday. The leader of the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) had been widely expected to win the vote to become the country's 10th chancellor since World War II.