Joseph Aoun elected Lebanon's 14th president: New chapter begins, but constitutional concerns linger

Report by Maroun Nassif, English adaptation by Karine Keuchkerian

In the second round of voting, Army Commander General Joseph Aoun was elected as the 14th president of Lebanon, receiving 99 votes out of 128.

The 99 votes included support from all political opposition and resistance blocs, except for the Free Patriotic Movement's bloc and some independent MPs who opposed violating the constitution.

The issue of constitutional violations was raised by several MPs during the session, to which Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri responded decisively, saying, "Yes, we are violating it, but..."

After the result was announced, the elected president arrived at Parliament’s main hall to the sound of the presidential guard’s music.

His family had already arrived after reports confirmed that the Hezbollah-Amal Movement duo had agreed on his candidacy.

The calmness of the afternoon session followed a stormy one earlier in the day. 

The morning session saw intense exchanges between MPs, with MP Salim Aoun exchanging insults with MP Paula Yacoubian and MP Firas Hamdan in front of a crowd of Arab and foreign ambassadors.

Most of the speeches in the morning session were divided between MPs defending Aoun’s election, even if it involved violating the constitution, and others opposing it and calling for a constitutional amendment.

The morning session, which Speaker Berri suspended for consultation, ended with Joseph Aoun receiving 71 votes, 37 blank ballots, 14 votes in favor of the "sovereignty and constitution" slogan, and two votes for Chibli Mallat.

After a long election day, white smoke finally emerged from the Parliament.