Lebanon MPs again fail to fill vacant presidency

SMA NEWS – BEIRUT
Lebanon’s divided parliament failed to elect a new president on Thursday for a ninth time, with many MPs spoiling their ballots, including one who cast a vote for “Nelson Mandela.”
Hezbollah opponent Michel Moawad won the support of 39 MPs, but fell well short of the required majority.
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri adjourned the session and announced a new meeting next Thursday, the last session for 2022.
Berri reiterated calls for dialogue among MPs to find a consensus candidate to prevent the process dragging on for months.
Only 105 of 128 MPs showed up for the vote on Thursday and many of them spoilt their ballots.
For the first time, and after eight parliamentary sessions, the number of blank ballots cast by Hezbollah and its allies was equal to the number of votes received by Mouawad.
This tie came against the backdrop of the dispute that arose between Hezbollah and its Christian ally in Lebanon, the Free Patriotic Movement, since the Cabinet session last Monday.
According to a parliamentary observer, the FPM decided to stop casting blank ballots as before and distribute its votes in a calculated manner.
Although the session failed to elect a president, the FPM’s move sent a calculated message to Hezbollah on its open decisions by leaking some of its deputies’ votes in favor of Mouawad, thereby reducing the number of blank votes, the observer said.
The winning candidate requires at least 86 votes in the first round of voting, and an absolute majority of 65 votes in subsequent rounds.
The parliament again failed to hold a second round for loss of quorum after the withdrawal of Hezbollah, the Amal Movement and MPs from other blocs.