FILE - German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier poses aft the signaling of the accepted statesmanlike Christmas connection astatine Bellevue Palace successful Berlin successful Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Dec. 22, 2021. Germany's environmentalist Greens person travel retired successful favour of a 2nd word for President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, leaving the caput of authorities well-placed for different 5 years successful office. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn, File) (Michael Sohn, Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

BERLIN – Germany's environmentalist Greens came retired Tuesday successful favour of a 2nd word for President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, leaving the caput of authorities well-placed to triumph different 5 years successful office.

The Greens were the past of the 3 parties successful Chancellor Olaf Scholz's caller authorities to endorse Steinmeier, who was a longtime subordinate of Scholz's center-left Social Democrats.

The president volition beryllium elected connected Feb. 13 by a peculiar assembly made up of the members of parliament's little location and representatives of Germany's 16 states. The Social Democrats, the Greens and the pro-business Free Democrats — the 3rd enactment successful Scholz's conjugation — are expected to person a bulk successful the assembly.

Steinmeier announced that helium would question a 2nd word past May, earlier the parliamentary predetermination that brought Scholz's conjugation to powerfulness and astatine a clip erstwhile his chances of reelection looked acold from certain. The president, who turns 66 connected Wednesday, said helium wanted to assistance heal divisions widened by the coronavirus pandemic.

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Before becoming president, Steinmeier served 2 stints arsenic Chancellor Angela Merkel’s overseas curate and antecedently was main of unit to Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.

Germany’s president has small enforcement powerfulness but is considered an important motivation authority. After a messy parliamentary predetermination effect successful 2017, Steinmeier helped prod politicians to signifier a caller conjugation authorities alternatively than holding retired for a caller vote.

Some figures successful Merkel's center-right Union bloc, which is present successful opposition, person called for their enactment to nominate a pistillate for the presidency. Germany hasn't yet had a pistillate caput of state.

A connection from the Greens' enactment described Steinmeier arsenic “a precise bully and highly regarded president,” quality bureau dpa reported. It said the party's leaders are “convinced that helium volition proceed to springiness our nine enactment and predisposition connected the hard mode retired of the pandemic.”

Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.