Vietnamese president reelected with overwhelming majority

By Vo Hai, Nguyen Hoai   July 25, 2016 | 01:04 am PT
Vietnamese president reelected with overwhelming majority
State President Tran Dai Quang at his inaugural ceremony. Photo by VnExpress
Vietnam's top legislative body has reconfirmed Tran Dai Quang to one of the country's most powerful positions.

The president's confirmation was decided through a secret ballot of the National Assembly, in which Quang received 98.18 percent of the votes to re-secure the post he was assigned to on April 2 during Vietnam’s transition to a new government.

Quang’s approval was in effect a formality since he was the sole candidate put forward by the National Congress, which is held every five years. The only surprise was that his confirmation came three months ahead of schedule.

Taking his his oath of office, Quang said: "With honor and great responsibility as head of state acting on behalf of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on domestic and foreign affairs, chairman of the Council of Defense and Security and leader of the people's armed forces, I will inherit and develop our national traditions of building and defending the country and serving the people."

Sixty-year-old Tran Dai Quang was born in Ninh Binh Province. Quang is a seasoned figure in the public security sector and also a member of the powerful Politburo, the Communist Party's decision-making body.

He is a professor with a Ph.D in Law, and has held a number of positions, including director general of the Department of Security Advisory, director general of the Directorate of Security and deputy minister of Public Security.

In 2011, he was appointed Minister of Public Security in the first session of the 13th National Assembly. In the same year, Quang was promoted from lieutenant general to colonel general, and to general a year later.

 
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