Merkel has been greeted with a standing ovation on her last day as chancellor. The Social Democrat Olaf Scholz has obtained 395 votes of the 369 he needed, after the coalition pact signed yesterday by Social Democrats, Greens and Liberals.
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The lower house of the German Parliament, the Bundestag, elected Social Democrat Olaf Scholz as the new Chancellor, at the head of a tripartite coalition that also incorporates Greens and Liberals and that ends 16 years of uninterrupted power of Angela Merkel.
The coalition traffic lights, As the alliance between the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the Greens and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) is known, this Wednesday added 395 votes in favor in the Bundestag, enough for Scholz to have exceeded the threshold of 369 he needed to be appointed new chancellor.
Scholz, de 63 years, thus assumes the main position of the Government after serving as number two and coalition minister in the now defunct ‘grand coalition’ with Merkel, who did not aspire to reelection in the legislative elections in September.
Scholz becomes the ninth chancellor from Germany since World War II. It has done so in the presence of the last Social Democratic leader, Gerhard Schroeder, invited in Parliament during the vote.
His main short-term priorities include containing the covid-19 pandemic and also international challenges such as escalating tensions with Russia due to its growing presence on the Ukrainian border.
At the beginning of the session, the President of the Bundestag, the Social Democrat Bärbel Bas gave the welcome to Merkel, seated in the tribune of honor, who has received a long ovation to which he has responded by saying hello several times.
Once the vote is over, Scholz will receive his appointment record at the Bellevue Palace, seat of the presidency.
Around 12:00, Bas will proceed to the inauguration again in the Bundestag and Scholz will be sworn in.
Afterwards, the new ministers will be appointed at the Bellevue Palace and the composition of the Executive will be announced in the Bundestag at around 1:30 p.m., after which the members of the Council of Ministers will also be sworn in.
Later, Merkel will receive her successor to the Chancellery for the handover of functions, after which the new government will be able to officially begin work.
Social democrats, liberals and greens signed the coalition pact yesterday, a formality prior to the inauguration, which under the slogan Daring for more progress It will guide the future German Government.
Thus ends the 16 years of the Merkel era, in which the Social Democrats were part of a grand coalition in the first, third and fourth legislatures, while the Liberals were the partners in the second.
Ratings of world leaders
The President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sanchez, has celebrated the election of the new German Chancellor, which means that “at last”, after 16 years, there is a Social Democrat at the helm of the country. It considers that this turn is a sample of “what is to come in Europe”.
For his part, the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, highlighted after congratulating Scholz that Russian-German relations are important not only for both countries, but for “all of Europe.”
Also the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, has congratulated the Social Democrat Olaf Scholz, whom he has asked to “improve” bilateral relations and mutual trust after the departure of Angela Merkel.
Furthermore, the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, has thanked Angela Merkel via Twitter for the work she has done in favor of Europe in her 16 years as German Chancellor, and has welcomed her successor, whom she will receive this Friday at the Elysee. “Thank you, dear Angela, for never having forgotten the lessons of history and for having done so much for and with us to advance Europe,” said the head of state on his Twitter account.
Thank you, dear Angela, for never having forgotten the lessons of history, for having done so much for us, with us, to move Europe forward. Danke, dass du die Lehren der Geschichte nie vergessen und so viel für und mit uns getan hast, um Europa voranzubringen. pic.twitter.com/zYfiGUNQcf
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) December 8, 2021
Kingston is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his in-depth and engaging writing on sports. He currently works as a writer at 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the sports industry.
