TIRANA – Ilir Meta was elected on Friday President of the Republic of Albania with 87 votes pro and 2 against.

Parliament of Albania, which convened in an extraordinary session on Friday afternoon, has voted the candidacy of Ilir Meta as President of the Republic.

While 89 deputies have voted in total, the election of president in this fourth round requires 71 votes in favor.

The candidacy of Meta was proposed by 23 lawmakers. Meanwhile, the first three rounds were exhausted without any candidate.

The Law Committee conducted a formal verification regarding the integrity of his figure and fulfillment of constitutional criteria, such as the law on decriminalization and requirements written into the Constitution about the head of state.

After going through the candidate’s file, the committee unanimously voted the candidature of Meta, the current Parliament Speaker, as a figure in compliance with the criteria defined in the legal base.

Ilir Meta will hold the post of President of the Republic for the period 2017-2022.