German lawmakers voted to re-elect Angela Merkel as Chancellor for a fourth, and likely final term.
The majority vote in the Bundestag means the Christian Democratic Union leader embarked on her fourth term.
She has been elected at the helm of German politics following months of negotiations with the Social Democratic Party (SPD) that culminated in the revival of the so-called grand coalition (mockingly dubbed a "GroKo" in German).
In a secret ballot, 364 of the Bundestag's 709 members voted in favour of Merkel -- nine more than the 50 per cent required
Merkel will be formally appointed by President Frank-Walter Steinmeier before taking the oath of office.