Mongolia gets new prime minister who pledged to address economic demands of protesters

Mongolia's new prime minister vows to address economic demands after predecessor resigns amid protests.

The new Prime Minister of Mongolia has pledged to address the economic demands of protesters after their daily rallies led to the fall of his predecessor.

Lawmakers approved former parliament speaker Zandanshatar Gombojav as Prime Minister by an overwhelming majority in a vote late Thursday night.

His election appeared to mark the end of several weeks of political uncertainty in a still-young democracy of 3.4 million people that is sandwiched between much larger China and Russia. The new leader faces multiple challenges including high inflation, a looming government budget deficit and fears of power shortages this winter.

Speaking ahead of the vote in parliament, Mr. Zandanshatar said this year’s government spending needs to be reduced by about $640 million to avoid a significant revenue shortfall.

“Revision of the budget has become inevitable,” the former banker said, saying he would submit a revised budget to parliament next week.

Mr. Zandanshatar, 45, studied economics at university in Russia and was vice director of one of the largest commercial banks in Mongolia.

He was parliament speaker from 2020 to 2024 and was named head of the president’s office after he lost his seat in an election last year. From 2014-16, he was a visiting scholar at Stanford University in California.