Popular Steinmeier the favorite to win German presidency

A German parliamentary assembly is electing the country's new president on Sunday, and the country's former foreign minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, is the overwhelming favorite to win.

The German president has little executive power, but is considered an important moral authority.

The new head of state will succeed Joachim Gauck, a 77-year-old former pastor and East German pro-democracy activist who isn't seeking a second five-year term because of his age.