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Which religious communities traditionally provide Lebanon’s president, prime minister, and National Assembly speaker?
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Under Lebanon’s long-standing power-sharing arrangement, known as the Lebanese National Pact, the country’s top leadership positions are traditionally allocated to specific religious communities:12
- President: Must be a Maronite Christian.12
- Prime Minister: Must be a Sunni Muslim.12
- Speaker of the National Assembly: Must be a Shiʿi Muslim.12
This sectarian distribution is an unwritten convention that serves as a cornerstone of the Lebanese political system, intended to balance the influence of the country's various religious groups.23