Cyprus parliament elects first madam speaker

The newly-elected House in the Republic of Cyprus has voted for the first woman ever to preside over the assembly, as ruling party MP Annita Demetriou received the most votes after an intense procedure.

Demetriou, who was elected on Thursday afternoon, made references to US Vice President Kamala Harris in her victory speech, adding that Representatives in the Republic of Cyprus were being called to restore credibility in the House and politics in general.

"Today we are called more than ever to restore our lost credibility, and in order to achieve this we must work with objectivity, impartiality, and above all with alliances, building the Cyprus of tomorrow, the Cyprus we deserve," she said.

The new House Speaker received votes from her own DISY conservative party, as well as DIPA democrats and ELAM nationalists, after ELAM president Christos Christou withdrew from the race, giving his party's votes to Demetriou.

Opposition parties and political pundits have been calling prior to Demetriou’s election for an update of House Speakership voting procedures, so that a super majority would be needed to win the top seat in the future. Different criteria currently apply in different voting rounds.

After Demetriou was installed, all parties congratulated her and vowed to work together with the new house speaker on a positive agenda.

According to tradition and because the vice president position remains vacant due to ethnic division on the island, the House Speaker traditionally performs duties of Acting President while the President of the Republic is traveling abroad.