German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's government lost a confidence vote in parliament Friday, giving Schroeder the chance he has sought to hold new elections, reported AP. The confidence motion got 151 votes, short of the 301 votes needed as members of Schroeder's own party obeyed his request to abstain. Struggling with a sluggish economy and dissent in his own ranks, Schroeder says he wants an election to get a new mandate from voters to push ahead with controversial economic reforms.
