BERLIN (AP) — Friedrich Merz succeeded Tuesday 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.

Now it’s neither.This was the central message from the chaotic transfer of power on Tuesday that saw Friedrich Merz, the conservative winner of the last election, take the helm of the world’s third-largest economy.

German conservative leader Friedrich Merz failed to secure enough parliamentary votes to become chancellor in a major blow.