Mr. Merz needed two rounds of voting to become chancellor after a surprising defeat in Parliament hours earlier that threatened to hobble his new government.

BERLIN (AP) — Conservative leader Friedrich Merz succeeded Tuesday in becoming Germany’s next chancellor, drawing applause and a palpable sense of relief in the parliament chamber after a historic loss in the first round of voting threatened the new government's promises of stability.

Merz' appointment ends six months of political deadlock in the country after the collapse of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government in November.