German Vote Looms in State Merkel Lost After First Greek Aid
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Lawmakers in Germany’s most populous state voted down the region’s budget, signaling the probable collapse of the Social Democratic-led coalition in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Parliament members in the state capital, Dusseldorf, rejected the budget by 94 votes to 91 votes today. Hannelore Kraft, the SPD state prime minister who leads a minority government with the Greens, said before the ballot that she would let voters decide on the future leadership of the state of almost 18 million people if the budget failed, according to comments broadcast live on N24 television.