Lebanese Parliament fails to elect President for the third time

For the third time, the Lebanese Parliament failed to elect a new President of the Lebanese Republic during a session held today, Thursday, headed by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.

A total of 119 deputies attended the session at the public hall at 11 a.m., which means that the quorum of at least 86 deputies required to start the electoral process existed. Any presidential candidate who receives 65 votes wins the election and thus becomes President of the Republic.

The session witnessed 55 empty votes, 42 for Michel Moawad, 17 for New Lebanon, one vote for Milad Abu Melhab, and 4 ballot papers were canceled.

It is assumed that the second round of elections will be held, but the session lost its quorum, meaning that there were no 86 deputies left in the public hall, which prompted Berri to set a second electoral session on Monday, October 24, 2022.

Lebanon has been experiencing an economic meltdown since 2019 when the World Bank ranked it among the worst in the world.

The crisis caused the local currency to lose about 95 percent of its value on the black market and made more than 80 percent of the population below the poverty line.

The international community is pressuring Parliament to elect a new president within the constitutional deadlines to avoid deepening the crisis that requires necessary reforms.