Lebanese MPs to convene to elect new president, no consensus on candidate

Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri will call for a session to elect a new president on Sept. 29, state media reported, despite no political consensus
on a candidate and dim chances of a sucessful vote.
President Michel Aoun’s six-year term ends on Oct. 31, and politicians have voiced concern about no successor being found – warning of even greater institutional deadlock given that Lebanon has also been without a fully functioning government since May.
The votes of two-thirds of lawmakers in the 128-member legislature are required for a candidate to be sucessful in the first round of voting, after which a simple majority suffices.
Aoun came to power after a 29-month presidential vacuum in which parliament was unable to agree on electing a president.