A Libyan parliament committee demanded that the chamber pick an interim prime minister on Monday, a move that could turn major factions against each other following an election failure.
After national elections collapsed last month, a committee set up to chart a political future said a fresh election would take at least nine months to prepare.
The eastern parliament’s attempt to replace Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah, who was installed through a U.N.-backed peace process, would likely be rejected by other political institutions and armed factions.
The interim government of Dbeibah was installed a year ago to replace two rival administrations ruling in the east and west, a state that some Libyans fear will recur.
In the weeks following the election, armed forces have mobilized around the capital Tripoli in northwest Libya, raising concerns that any disputes over the government could trigger violence inside the city.
Both parliamentary and presidential elections were to take place on Dec. 24, as part of a U.N.-backed peace plan, but preparations for the vote came to a halt due to disagreements over fundamental rules, including the eligibility of some main candidates.
Since the 2011 uprising against Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has not experienced true peace, and the country split after a 2014 election between warring eastern and western factions.
Parliament, after the election process unraveled, established a political roadmap committee to determine what to do next.
In a Monday address to the chamber, parliament speaker Aguila Saleh, who was a candidate for the presidency, said Dbeibah’s term had expired.
Dbeibah ran for the presidency while serving as prime minister and his candidacy was viewed as unfair by rivals.
In its report, presented to parliament on Monday, the committee emphasized that to avoid fraud and ensure security, a new election would need at least nine months to prepare.
Parliament will also vote on a new prime minister on Tuesday.
Following her meeting on Sunday with parliament speaker Saleh, U.N. Libya adviser Stephanie Williams said the focus should be on new elections. Williams has met with all the major players in Libya in recent weeks.
The parliament was elected in 2014 and predominantly sided with the east during the civil war in Libya. In the eight years since the last election, it has been seen as one of several competing political bodies internationally recognized, but whose legitimacy has diminished.
