BELGRADE, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- Serbia's National Assembly will hold the first session of its 15th convocation on Nov. 17 to confirm the mandates of newly elected lawmakers and elect a new speaker and deputy speakers, Speaker Ana Brnabic announced on Sunday.
The session is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. local time (0900 GMT) at the National Assembly building in Belgrade, the Serbian capital.
According to the agenda, lawmakers will first confirm the mandates of newly elected members, followed by the election of the speaker and deputy speakers. Other items include the appointment of the parliament's secretary-general, the election of members of parliamentary working bodies and the appointment of members to Serbia's permanent parliamentary delegations to international organizations.
Speaking at a news conference at the National Assembly building on Sunday, Brnabic said the Republic Election Commission (RIK) had adopted the final report on the parliamentary election results on Nov. 5 and issued decisions on the allocation of parliamentary mandates on Nov. 6, while also submitting its election report to the National Assembly. These steps fulfilled all the conditions for convening the first session of the new parliament, she said.
According to the final results announced by RIK on Nov. 5, the student-backed electoral list "Student List - Students Are Winning" secured an absolute majority, winning 140 of the 250 seats in the National Assembly. The list "Aleksandar Vucic - United Serbia," led by the Serbian Progressive Party, won 103 seats.
The remaining seven seats were distributed among five minority electoral lists. The lists representing the Hungarian and Albanian ethnic minorities secured two seats each, while three other minority lists won one seat apiece.
Brnabic said the first session would initially be chaired by Stojan Radenovic, the oldest elected member of parliament, until a new speaker is elected.
Under Serbia's Constitution, the speaker of the National Assembly assumes the duties of the president on an interim basis when the presidential office becomes vacant, for a period of up to three months, and is responsible for calling a presidential election within that timeframe. Following the resignation of former President Aleksandar Vucic, Brnabic has been serving as acting president.
After lawmakers elect a new parliamentary speaker, the new speaker, who is serving as acting president, will nominate a candidate for prime minister. The nominee must present a government program and a proposed list of cabinet members and secure the support of a majority of National Assembly deputies to form a new government.
The new government must be formed within 90 days of the constitution of the new National Assembly. Failure to meet this deadline will result in the dissolution of parliament and the holding of new parliamentary elections, as stipulated by the Constitution. ■
