Lebanon's parliament speaker Nabih Berri chairs a parliamentary session to elect a president, in Beirut, on January 9, 2025. (Photo by Anwar Amro / AFP)
Beirut, Lebanon: Lebanon's army chief Joseph Aoun on Thursday fell short of the two-thirds majority to become president in the first round of a parliamentary vote, but could still win in a second round.
Just 71 out of 128 lawmakers voted in favour of Aoun, short of the required 86, before Speaker Nabih Berri suspended the session until 2:00 pm (1200 GMT), sparking outrage from some lawmakers who demanded an immediate second vote.
Thirty-seven members of parliament voted blank, while 20 ballots where declared null and void.
The Mediterranean country has been without a president since the term of Michel Aoun -- not related -- ended in October 2022.
The legislative session comes with 17 days remaining in a ceasefire that called for the deployment of Lebanese troops alongside UN peacekeepers as Israeli forces withdraw from the country's south.
The president's powers have been reduced since the end of the 1975-1990 civil war, but filling the position is key to overseeing consultations towards naming a new prime minister who would lead a new government capable of carrying out reforms demanded by international creditors.
