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BERLIN (AP) – A three-party deal to form a new German government under center-left leader Olaf Scholz cleared its last hurdle on Monday and created the conditions for Scholz to succeed long-time Chancellor Angela Merkel this week will.
Germany’s environmentalist Greens said their base members had approved the deal reached last month, and 86% voted for it in a vote. The other two parties – Scholz’s center-left Social Democrats and the business-friendly Free Democrats – overwhelmingly approved the agreement at weekend conventions.
“We are going into a strong new government, with a very strong and diverse cabinet, with a strong tailwind from the vote,” said the Greens co-chair Annalena Baerbock, who is to become the first German foreign minister.
The goal of the coalition is to modernize Europe’s largest economy, to step up efforts against climate change and to introduce a more liberal social policy.
Scholz is to be elected to parliament as Chancellor on Wednesday, which will end the 16-year term of office of the center-right broker. He will need the support of at least 369 MPs in the 736-seat House of Commons to accept the top job. The three coalition partners have 416 seats together, so a comfortable majority should be safe for him.
Hours before the Greens cleared the way for this vote, Scholz introduced his party’s cabinet candidates, thus completing his 17-strong team.
The most closely watched appointment was that of the Minister of Health as Germany struggles to lower its highest coronavirus infection rates to date from the pandemic. Scholz decided on Karl Lauterbach, an epidemiologist and media-savvy legislator who lacks management experience, but who has been urging caution and strict measures against COVID-19 in Germany since the beginning of the pandemic.
“The pandemic is far from over,” said Scholz. “Most people in this country certainly wanted the next health minister to be a specialist who can do it really well, namely Karl Lauterbach.”
The federal and state heads of state and government announced tough new restrictions last week, mainly targeting unvaccinated people. In the longer term, Parliament is considering a general vaccination mandate.
When asked about the prospects for the Christmas season, Lauterbach said, “It must be an important goal to reduce the number of cases to such an extent that we can recommend trips without endangering people.”
When announcing his decisions for the interior and defense departments, Scholz said that “security will be in the hands of strong women in this government”.
Nancy Faeser, lawyer and head of the Hessian Party Association, was an unexpected choice for Germany’s first female interior minister, who also oversees the federal police and domestic intelligence. Faeser said a primary focus will be on fighting right-wing extremism, which she described as “the greatest threat” to the country.
The outgoing Justice Minister Christine Lambrecht becomes the new Defense Minister.
The Greens and Free Democrats have already named their ministers. Scholz Vice Chancellor is Robert Habeck, who leads the Greens together with Baerbock. He will head an economics and climate ministry, a new combination.
The party’s five cabinet members include Cem Özdemir, who will become Minister of Agriculture. Özdemir said it was significant that he would become the first federal minister of Turkish origin 60 years after the first so-called guest workers came to Germany from Turkey after World War II.
The chairman of the Free Democrats, Christian Lindner, becomes finance minister and practically number 3 in the new government.
Scholz had promised a gender-equitable cabinet – what it is if you don’t count the Chancellor. He said his own party’s decisions reflect the fact that women should have “half the power”.
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Frank Jordans in Berlin contributed to this report.
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Follow AP coverage of Germany’s transition to a new government at https://apnews.com/hub/germany-election.
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