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Schroeder faces confidence vote

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Germany
Gerhard Schroeder
Horst Koehler
Angela Merkel

BERLIN, Germany -- Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder will call a vote of confidence in the German parliament on Friday as part of his plan to hold early elections.

Schroeder is hoping he will lose the vote of deputies in the Bundestag, a move that would allow him to resign as chancellor and call fresh elections in the autumn -- probably in mid-September.

He would then begin campaigning for a fresh mandate to push through tough economic reforms.

Schroeder called for early elections after his party, the Social Democrats, lost a crucial regional election on May 22. A national poll was not due until 2006.

He has tried to spur the sluggish economy and reduce unemployment by trimming costs to business, but the moves have met resistance within his party.

He told the Bundestag on Monday that he would be seeking the vote of confidence.

For Schroeder to lose, some deputies in his ruling coalition, which holds a thin majority, would have to vote against him or abstain. In the lead-up to the vote, only one minister had publicly announced he would abstain.

The plan could also fail if Schroeder wins the vote with the support of some opposition deputies, who fear they could lose they seats in an early election.

But even if the plan succeeds, Germany's President Hoerst Koehler could refuse to dissolve the Bundestag on the grounds that the vote has been manipulated.

The German constitution grants the president that power to ensure that parliaments are not dissolved early by chancellors merely seeking to secure re-election, something which happened often in the Weimar and early Nazi period.

If Koehler rejected the vote, Schroeder would still have the option of resigning, however he has indicated he would not do that.

Schroeder will address the Bundestag before the vote to outline his justification for calling such a move. Other parties will also be allowed to speak before the vote takes place.

If Schroeder loses the vote and Koehler dissolves the parliament, a new national ballot would have to be held within 60 days.

A recent poll found 71 percent of Germans favored an early election, with 24 percent opposed.

Schroeder last called a vote of confidence in November 2001, on the issue of sending German troops to Afghanistan.

Schroeder's conservative challenger is Angela Merkel, who would be Germany's first female leader if elected.

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