On Thursday, January 9, the Lebanese parliament is set to convene to elect a new president. The previous president, Michel Aoun, ended his term two years ago, and since then, the factions in the Lebanese legislature have been unable to reach an agreement on the identity of the next president.
Here are the main things you need to know ahead of the vote in the Lebanese parliament:
1. THE ROLE OF THE PRESIDENT
Article 49 of the Lebanese Constitution defines the president as the head of state, and he is a symbol of national unity. The president is responsible for safeguarding the constitution, Lebanon's independence, and its territorial integrity. As the supreme commander of the armed forces, the president acts under the authority of the government and heads the Supreme Defense Council.
2. MARONITE CHRISTIAN
There is a long-standing and unwritten tradition that the president comes from the Maronite Christian community, although this is not officially enshrined in the constitution. This tradition has been maintained since Lebanon's independence in 1943. The president serves a single six-year term without renewal or extension, unless parliament implements a constitutional amendment, as happened with presidents Elias Harawi and Emile Lahoud, whose terms were each exceptionally extended by three years.
3. THE ELECTION PROCESS
Elections to parliament are secret. In the first round, a candidate must win the votes of two-thirds of the members of parliament, i.e. at least 86 votes out of 128, to be elected president. If no candidate receives the required number of votes in the first round, the elections go to a second round, where a simple majority of more than 50% (65 votes) is sufficient to win.
However, the vote is only valid if at least 85 MPs are present. Therefore, if certain factions expect that the opposing candidate may win, their members can leave the parliamentary plenary. It is enough for 43 MPs, the so-called "blocking third", to leave the place for the second round to be meaningless.
As of today, the Shiite camp has 30 seats (Hezbollah + Amal Movement). To this must be added the 17 seats of its Christian allies - the center-right party "Free Patriotic Movement", so that this bloc has the possibility of reaching a "blocking third".
According to Lebanese law, the election results can be appealed within 24 hours. This requires at least 43 lawmakers to file an appeal with Lebanon's Constitutional Council.
4. RESTRICTIONS ON CANDIDATES
Article 49 of the constitution prohibits judges, senior civil servants, and military personnel from running for president during their term. Exceptions usually require constitutional amendments, as was the case with Lahoud, who was elected to office in 1998 despite serving as commander of the Lebanese army.
However, there has also been a case where a president was elected without a constitutional change: in May 2008, the then army commander, General Michel Suleiman, was elected after a consensus was reached between the various factions of Lebanese politics. 118 members of parliament voted for Suleiman, whose election ended an 18-month period without a president.
Both examples are also relevant to the upcoming elections. The leading candidate for president is the current army chief, General Joseph Aoun.
If he manages to win the first round with 86 votes and is elected, the constitution will have to be changed to allow this, as in the case of Lahoud. If the various factions reach a consensus on him, he could enter the presidency even without a constitutional amendment, but at the moment the chances of this seem extremely slim.