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Lebanon delays presidential election again over political division

09 June 2014 22:05 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The Lebanese parliament on Monday failed again to elect a new president as not enough lawmakers were present at session to fill the presidential vacancy after former President Michel Suleiman's term officially ended late last month, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

According to the constitution, a vote to elect a president can only be called when a quorum of two thirds of the legislature's 128 members attend the session.

It has been the sixth consecutive time when the vote cannot proceed owning to the lack of required quorum. Speaker Nabih Berri has called for a new session on June 18.

Sharp political division between the two groups of legislators has been the key reason for the on-going political impasse. Lebanese Prime Minister Tammam salam is now serving as the country 's acting president before a consensus reached in the parliament.

A total of 64 members of Parliament (MPs) arrived at the house on Monday, less than the constitutionally stipulated 86. The MPs of the March 8 camp, a group of lawmakers who support the current Syrian President Bashar al-Assad did not show up at the session. They belong to either the Hezbollah or the Free Patriotic Movement.

The pro-Assad group has not up until now name their candidate for president. The other key group, the March 14 camp, which is led by the son of assassinated former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri and backed by Saudi Arabia and Washington, has already named the Lebanese military leader Samir Geagea as their choice.

Apart from their differences over the bloody conflicts in Syria, the two political camps are also divided concerning the question of Hezbollah's weapons.

During the first round of voting on April 23rd, Geagea gained 48 votes while the Democratic Gathering centrist MPs gained 16 votes. During that session, the March 8 camp cast 52 blank votes. Right now, neither political camps has the majority to ensure a success in a presidential election.

In Lebanon, a president should be Christian Maronite, and can only serve a single six-year term.