Friedrich Merz has become Germany’s new chancellor after winning a second vote in the country’s parliament.

He unexpectedly failed in the first parliamentary ballot on Tuesday morning – the first time a chancellor has failed to be elected at the first attempt since the Second World War.

Initially, needing a majority of 316 out of 630 votes in a secret ballot, he received 310 – falling short by just six votes. On the second ballot he managed 325.

It means Mr Merz, the leader of the country’s CDU/CSU conservatives, has become the 10th chancellor since the end of the Second World War.

He had been expected to win comfortably after securing a coalition deal with the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD).

It meant at least 18 coalition MPs failed to back him in the first round of voting.

Announcing the second vote, Jens Spahn, the head of the Union bloc in parliament, said: “The whole of Europe, perhaps even the whole world, is watching this second round of elections.”

Earlier, the leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, Alice Weidel, said on X that Mr Merz’s failure to secure a majority in the first round showed the “weak foundation” on which his coalition was built, adding that it had been “voted out by the voters”.

Mr Merz, 69, succeeds Olaf Scholz and has vowed to prioritise European unity and the continent’s security.

His in-tray includes the Ukraine war and global tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy sent congratulations to Mr Merz and wished him “every success”.

The Ukrainian president added that the future of Europe was “at stake” and security will “depend on our unity”.

Mr Merz will also have to decide what to do about the AfD, which mainstream parties have refused to work with.

A “firewall” against collaborating with strongly right-wing parties has been in place since the end of the war.

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During federal elections in late February, the AfD scored its best-ever result while Olaf Scholz’s SPD dropped to about 16%.

The AfD is the second largest party in the lower house of the Bundestag and was officially designated as extremist last week by Germany’s domestic spy agency.

The writer of Conclave has said he believes the role of women in the Catholic Church will be a “big issue” for the next pope.

Robert Harris, whose papal novel became a hit film, said the approach of Francis‘s successor would be crucial and was a “profoundly political moment for the world”.

Speaking on The News Hour with Mark Austin, he said he had been struck by how the gospels’ teachings, such as the “necessity to get rid of all worldly wealth”, appeared at odds with the grandeur associated with the papacy.

“When I compared that to the reality of the Vatican, it’s hard not to be struck by the contrast,” he said.

“And in particular, in the 21st century, can it really be the case that Christ did not intend half the world’s population to play a full role in spreading his word?”

“I don’t see how this cannot be the issue facing the church over the next few years,” Harris added.

“The Jewish faith has female rabbis, the Anglicans have female bishops; can it really be the case that Roman Catholics cannot allow the ordination of women?

“Maybe they won’t – but I cannot help but believe it will be a big issue,” said Harris.

Catholicism does not allow women to become priests – a principle confirmed by Pope John Paul II in 1994 when he said the church had “no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women”.

Harris said he had deliberately included the pivotal character of Sister Agnes in his story to “give some voice to these women” – who otherwise are shown looking after the cardinals during the film.

The secretive process to elect a new pope begins for real in the Sistine Chapel on Wednesday when 133 cardinals begin the first round of voting amid tight security.

All eyes will be on the lookout for the white smoke that signals they have reached a decision.

The author, a former political journalist, told Sky News his research for the book included speaking to a cardinal who had taken part in the conclave.

He said the protocols portrayed by the likes of Ralph Fiennes in the movie were all true to life and set out by the Vatican.

However, he added: “I’m dramatising something, trying to make it entertaining, so I doubt whether the conclave will be so full of skulduggery as the novel and film.”

Read more:
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How accurate is the film Conclave?
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Harris said the election of the new pope – which requires a two-thirds majority – made it a political as well as spiritual exercise for the cardinals.

He agreed the battle is likely to be between traditionalist cardinals and those who want to continue Francis’s more informal, progressive approach.

Harris said the first South American pope “put a lot of noses out of joint in the grander bureaucracy of the church”.

“Francis really laid down a marker to the old guard,” he told Sky News.

“He didn’t move into the papal apartments, he refused the elaborate papal cars – he wanted a little ordinary car to go around in; he used to dine in the cafeteria at nights with the nuns who run the Casa Santa Marta.”

If Francis’s successor reverts to convention and moves back into the Apostolic Palace, Harris said it would be an “indication of the direction the new pope will take the church”.

Among the favourites to lead the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics is Luis Tagle, a cardinal who could become the first Asian pope, and who has been likened to Pope Francis.

Two Italians are also seen as strong contenders: The Archbishop of Bologna, Matteo Zuppi, and the so-called “deputy pope” Pietro Parolin.

Harris said whatever approach the new pontiff takes – whether a liberal interpretation or more conservative – would have a real impact on some of today’s most contentious issues, such as assisted dying for example.

“These crucial political decisions are greatly affected by the Roman Catholic Church,” said Harris.

“The church is an immensely wealthy, powerful institution that reaches into all areas of society, whether you’re Catholic or not. So this is a profoundly political moment for the world.”

US defence secretary Pete Hegseth cancelled military aid to Ukraine without a direct order from Donald Trump about a week after he was sworn in as president, according to a report.

The pause led to the US Transportation Command (TRANSCOM) stopping 11 flights from US bases in Delaware and Qatar which were loaded with artillery shells and other weaponry and had been bound for Ukraine, according to Reuters.

Hours later, Ukrainian and Polish officials then asked Washington what was happening but top national security officials in the White House, Pentagon and US State Department were unable to provide answers, said the news agency.

Trump latest: ‘Some places are never for sale’, Carney tells president

The pause came as Ukraine’s military was struggling to fight off Russian forces in eastern Ukraine and in the consequential battle for Russia’s Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces were losing ground and have since all but been forced out.

Reuters reported that records it reviewed showed Mr Hegseth had given a verbal order to stop the weapons shipments soon after attending an Oval Office meeting on 30 January, where cutting military aid to Kyiv was discussed, but Mr Trump did not give an instruction to stop it.

The president was unaware of Mr Hegseth’s order, as were other top national security officials in the meeting, Reuters said.

According to TRANSCOM records, the verbal order originated from Mr Hegseth’s office, the news agency claimed. It added that a TRANSCOM spokesperson said the command received the order via the Pentagon’s Joint Staff.

Within a week – 5 February, the military flights were back in the air.

Asked to comment on the report, the White House told Reuters that Mr Hegseth had followed a directive from President Trump to pause aid to Ukraine, which it said was the administration’s position at the time.

It did not explain why, according to those who spoke to Reuters, top national security officials in the normal decision-making process did not know about the order or why it was so swiftly reversed.

‘Complex and fluid situation’

“Negotiating an end to the Russia-Ukraine War has been a complex and fluid situation. We are not going to detail every conversation among top administration officials throughout the process,” said White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt.

“The bottom line is the war is much closer to an end today than it was when President Trump took office.”

It is unclear if Mr Trump subsequently questioned or reprimanded Mr Hegseth.

Read more from Sky News:
Trump denies posting image of himself as pope
Merz becomes Germany’s new chancellor after surviving vote failure

Mr Hegseth and other top US officials, including national security adviser Mike Waltz, came under fire in March after a journalist was accidentally added to a group chat where they discussed plans to conduct airstrikes on Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis.

Waltz ultimately intervened

Reuters reported Mr Waltz ultimately intervened to reverse the military aid cancellations. Mr Waltz was forced out last Thursday and has been nominated as US ambassador to the United Nations.

The cancellations cost TRANSCOM $2.2m (£1.6m), according to the records reviewed by Reuters. In response to a request for comment, TRANSCOM said that the total cost was $1.6m (£1.2m) – 11 flights were cancelled but one incurred no charge.

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An order halting military aid authorised under the Biden administration went into effect officially a month later, on 4 March, when the White House made an announcement.

Despite the brief pause in February and the longer one that began in early March, the Trump administration has resumed sending the last of the aid approved under Mr Biden. No new policy has been announced.