The Lebanese parliament fails for the eighth time in electing a president
The Lebanese parliament failed Thursday for the eighth time to elect a president of the republic, despite the post being vacant for a month, due to deep political divisions in the midst of an accelerating economic collapse that the authorities are unable to contain.
52 deputies voted with a white paper, while Representative Michel Moawad, who is supported by the Lebanese Forces led by Samir Geagea and other blocs, including the Druze leader Walid Jumblatt's bloc, got 37 votes.
Major blocs, including Hezbollah, the most prominent political and military force, oppose Moawad, who is known for his closeness to the Americans, and describe him as a "challenging" candidate, calling for agreement in advance on a candidate before going to parliament to elect him.
At the outset of the session, the representative of the Lebanese Forces Party, Antoine Habshi, criticized the repetition of the same scenario in every election session, which "puts the House of Representatives out of its role."
And Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri called for "inviting the heads of blocs and representatives to exercise their duties and to remain inside parliament to implement the constitution."
The system of settlements and quotas between political and sectarian forces usually delays important decisions, including forming a government or electing a president.
The Speaker of Parliament set a date for a new session next Thursday.
In the first round of voting, a candidate needs a two-thirds majority, or 86 votes, to win.
The required majority, if a second session takes place, becomes 65 votes out of 128, which is the number of parliament members.
Like every week, the first session was held with the presence of a two-thirds majority, before deputies withdrew to overthrow the quorum in the second session, a tactic pursued by Hezbollah and its allies.
No political party has a parliamentary majority to impose its candidate.
Parliament's failure to elect a president so far indicates that the electoral process may take a long time, in a country where constitutional deadlines are rarely respected.
Follow our latest local and sports news and the latest political and economic developments via Google news