India-backed Maldives Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid elected as UNGA President

The President of the General Assembly is elected every year by a secret ballot and requires a simple majority vote of the General Assembly. The 193-member General Assembly voted on Monday to elect Abdulla Shahid as the President, who will preside over the 76th session of the UN body that will commence in September.

United Nations: Maldives Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid was on Monday elected as President of the 76th session of the UN General Assembly, garnering 143 votes out of the 191 ballots cast. The 193-member General Assembly voted on Monday to elect the President, who will preside over the 76th session of the UN body that will commence in September. In the fray for the election was Shahid as well as former foreign minister of Afghanistan Dr Zalmai Rassoul, who got 48 votes. "Hearty congratulations to Maldives Foreign Minister @abdulla_shahid for the robust victory and for being elected as the 76th President of the UN General Assembly," India's Permanent Mission to the UN tweeted. India had already voiced its strong support for Shahid's candidature for President of the 76th session of the UNGA, saying he is best equipped to preside over the General Assembly of 193 nations of the world.