On 10 February, the House of Representatives (HoR) voted ‘unanimously’ to appoint Fathi Bashaagha as Prime Minister designate and the High State Council (HSC) issued a statement endorsing his candidacy. However, the legitimacy of the voting process – whereby HoR Speaker Aqeela Saleh called for a show of hands in favour of Bashaagha which he declared unanimous – has been questioned. Bashaagha has been given two weeks to form his government, at which point the HoR will hold a vote of confidence on his proposed cabinet. According to a statement issued by the HoR, the other candidate for Prime Minister, Khaled al-Bibas, was unable to obtain the necessary recommendations from the HSC and so his candidacy was withdrawn.
