President of Laos


The president of the Lao People's Democratic Republic is the head of state of Laos. The current president is Thongloun Sisoulith, since 22 March 2021. He was previously elected as the General Secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, Laos' most powerful position in January 2021, ranking him first in the Politburo.

History

Background

The office of the President of the People's Democratic Republic traces its lineage back to Prince Souphanouvong, the first President of the People's Democratic Republic, a member of the deposed royal family and one of the Three Princes, who became President when the former Kingdom of Laos was overthrown by the Pathet Lao in 1975, at the end of the Laotian Civil War.

Duties and rights

Term limits

The president is elected by the National Assembly for a term of five years, and may serve no more than two terms consecutively. A candidate must receive at least two-thirds support from lawmakers present and voting in order to be elected.

Role and authority

The president represents Laos internally and externally, supervises the work as well as preserving the stability of the national governmental system and safeguards the independence and territorial integrity of the country. The President appoints the prime minister, vice president, ministers and other officials with the consent of the National Assembly. Additionally, the President is the commander-in-chief of the Lao People's Armed Forces.
However, as Laos is a one party communist state, the highest and most powerful political position is the General Secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, not the President. The general secretary controls the Politburo and the Secretariat, Laos' top decision-making bodies, making the officeholder as de facto leader of Laos. For most of the time since 1998, the general secretary has also served concurrently as president. As such, the president derives most of his power from his post as general secretary. The resulting power structure is roughly similar to that of China, where the paramount leader usually serves as president of the People's [Republic of China|president], but derives almost all of his power from his post as party leader.
Since Laos is a one-party state, all the presidents of the People's Democratic Republic have been members of the party while holding office.