Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri during a parliamentary session dedicated to the election of a president of Lebanon in 2022. (Credit: Lebanese Parliament)
BEIRUT — Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Wednesday said that Parliament's doors are "not locked" for legislation or for a presidential election. Berri's comments come amid a presidential vacuum ongoing since Oct. 31, 2023 when Michel Aoun's term in office ended, and as the issue of holding legislative sessions when there is no head of state has caused disagreement between political parties.
According to the constitution, when a presidential term ends, Parliament's mandate is limited to that of an electoral body until a new president is elected. However, Berri convened Parliament earlier this month to extend the terms of municipal councils.
"The doors of Parliament are not locked for legislation or the presidential election, which we hope will be done today rather than tomorrow," Berri said in a statement published ahead of "Liberation day." This occasion marks the 23rd anniversary of the Israeli army's withdrawal from South Lebanon in 2000.
In his statement, Berri also urged "all parliamentary blocs and independent MPs to provide a consensus atmosphere between each other and to remove the obstacles that would prevent the election of a president that represents the will of the Lebanese who would unite and not separate."
Berri's party, Amal, and their ally, Hezbollah, have officially announced their support for Marada leader Sleiman Frangieh as the next president. However, Berri has expressed his openness to an alternative, consensus candidate.
Some opposition parties support MP Michel Moawad, who, like Frangieh, comes from the Zgharta district in North Lebanon.
Despite 11 presidential election sessions to date, Parliament has failed to elect a new president due to a lack of consensus between parties.