A senior member of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative party has been elected governor of Germany’s most populous state following an election last month that produced an unexpected center-right majority.
Armin Laschet, a liberal-minded deputy leader of Merkel’s Christian Democrats, succeeds Hannelore Kraft of the center-left Social Democrats as governor of North Rhine-Westphalia.
The state legislature in Duesseldorf elected Laschet yesterday. The new governor’s coalition with the pro-business Free Democrats has a one-seat majority.
North Rhine-Westphalia is a traditional center- left stronghold. Last month’s result raised hopes among some conservatives of a center-right comeback in a national election Sept. 24, in which Merkel is seeking a fourth term.
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