In a repeat vote in the German parliament, hours after conservative leader Friedrich Merz suffered a historic defeat in the first round, Bundestag lawmakers backed his candidacy for German chancellor, Euronews reported.

The conservative leader was expected to win a landslide victory in the morning vote and become Germany's tenth chancellor since World War II.

Merz received 325 votes in the second round.

In the secret ballot, he needed a majority of 316 votes out of 630. However, he received only 310 votes in the first round, so the 328 mandates belonging to his coalition were not enough.

Because the vote was secret, it was not immediately clear - and may never be known - who in Merz's camp did not back him.

Merz's coalition is made up of the center-right Christian Democratic Union and its sister Bavarian party, the Christian Social Union. They are joined by the center-left Social Democrats, led by outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who lost national elections in February.

Germany, the most populous member of the 27-nation European Union, has the largest economy on the continent and serves as a diplomatic heavyweight. Key dossiers in the new chancellor's portfolio will include the war in Ukraine and the Trump administration's conflicting trade policies, as well as domestic issues such as the rise of the far-right, anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany party.