Wulff elected German President
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Christian Wulff, nominated by Merkel's coalition government won the President election on Wednesday evening after three ballots.
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Wulff won 625 votes in the third ballot after failing to get an absolute majority in the first two secret ballots of the Federal Assembly, which is responsible for electing German President. |
His major competitor Joachim Gauck, a pro-democracy activist, nominated by the major opposition won 494 votes, while Luc Jochimsen from the Left party chose to withdraw in the third ballot.
Most of delegates from the Left party chose to abstain, instead of supporting Gauck, which helped Wulff to win the election.
Wulff, 51-year old, the premier of state Lower Saxony and a deputy leader of Merkel's conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) will become the youngest President in German history.
President usually serves as a ceremonial position in German political life, however, this election was widely taken as a serious test for Merkel's government, which has been shaken by inner divergence on policies and unpopular aid packages for other eurozone countries.
Some delegates from FDP, smaller partner in the coalition have openly expressed their preference for Wulff's competitor Gauck before the election, while the election result further highlighted the frictions within the coalition.
The coalition government controls 644 votes in paper, 21 more votes than an absolute majority in the Federal Assembly, formed by 1244 delegates from both houses of parliament and states.
