July 2007

1

Comoros: Mohamed Ali Said is sworn in as president of Mohéli.

Hammond

Greenland: Aleqa Hammond becomes foreign and finance minister.
Israel: Dalia Itzik becomes interim president as the resignation of Moshe Katsav takes effect. On July 15 Shimon Peres takes office as president.
Israel: The resignation of Finance Minister Avraham Hirchson is announced. In a reshuffle on July 4, Roni Bar-On is appointed finance minister and Meir Sheetrit interior minister.
Mali: In the first round of parliamentary elections (turnout 33.4%), 10 seats are won by the Alliance for Democracy and Progress, leaving 137 seats to be allocated in the second round on July 22; 13 additional seats are elected by citizens living abroad.

Magras

Saint-Barthélemy: In elections to the Territorial Council, the list of Bruno Magras (Saint-Barth d'abord) wins 72.2% of the vote and 16 of 19 seats. Turnout is 70.6%. Magras becomes president of the Territorial Council on July 15.

Fleming

Saint-Martin: In the first round of elections to the Territorial Council, the list of Louis Constant Fleming (Union for Progress) wins 40.3% of the vote, that of Alain Richardson (Rassemblement Responsabilité et Réussite) 31.9%, and that of Jean-Luc Hamlet (Réussir Saint-Martin) 10.9%. Turnout is 46.4%. A second round is held July 8, Fleming's list winning 49% of the vote (16 of 23 seats), Richardson's 42.2% (6), and Hamlet's 8.9% (1). Turnout is 50.8%. Fleming becomes president of the Territorial Council on July 15.
Switzerland: Sabine Pegoraro becomes president of the government of Basel-Land, Hugo Kayser Landammann of Nidwalden, Hans Hofer Landammann of Obwalden, and Pascal Broulis president of the Council of State of Vaud.

Zoellick

World Bank: Robert B. Zoellick takes office as president.

2

Lajcák

Bosnia and Hercegovina: Miroslav Lajcák (Slovakia) takes office as international high representative.
Russia: Aleksey Kuzmitsky takes office as governor of the new Kamchatka kray.
Seychelles: Vice President Joseph Belmont becomes internal affairs minister in a cabinet reshuffle.

3

France: The National Assembly gives a vote of confidence (321-224) to the new government of Prime Minister François Fillon. The Senate follows (195-125) on July 4.
Japan: Defense Minister Fumio Kyuma resigns. Yuriko Koike is named to succeed him; she takes office July 4.
Laos: In a cabinet reshuffle, Somdy Duangdy replaces Chansy Phosikham as finance minister.

5

Belarus: Former chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Belorussian S.S.R. (1986-90) Mikhail Vasilyevich Kovalev dies.
Russia: President Vladimir Putin nominates incumbent Viktor Ishayev as governor of Khabarovsk kray and incumbent Dmitry Zelenin as governor of Tver oblast. Ishayev is confirmed by the local Duma (24-2) on July 9. Zelenin is confirmed by the local legislative assembly (28-1 with 1 abstention) on July 10.

6

Komsic

Bosnia and Hercegovina: Zeljko Komsic assumes the chairmanship of the presidency.

Waterworth

Montserrat: Governor Deborah Barnes Jones departs. Financial Secretary John Skerritt becomes acting governor for a week, with Deputy Governor Sir Howard Fergus acting for the remaining time until the arrival of the new governor, Peter Waterworth, on July 27.
Russia: President Vladimir Putin nominates Valery Serdyukov as governor of Leningrad oblast and incumbent Viktor Tolokonsky as governor of Novosibirsk oblast. Serdyukov is confirmed by the local legislative assembly (38-1) on July 9. Tolokonsky is confirmed by the local council (74-3) on July 12.
Spain: Francesc Antich i Oliver becomes president of the government of Baleares.
Venezuela: President Hugo Chávez announces the appointment of Gen. Gustavo Rangel Briceño as defense minister. Rangel is sworn in July 18.

8

Topi

Albania: Parliament fails to elect a president, as Bamir Topi receives 75 votes, short of the required three-fifths majority (84 votes). In a second round on July 10, Topi wins only 74 votes. In a third round on July 14, Topi receives 50 votes and Neritan Ceka 32. In a fourth round on July 20, Topi is elected with 85 votes. He takes office on July 24.
India: Former prime minister (1990-91) Chandra Shekhar dies.

Zatlers

Latvia: Valdis Zatlers takes office as president.

9

Poland: Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski dismisses Deputy Prime Minister Andrzej Lepper.

10

Canada: David Onley is appointed as lieutenant governor of Ontario. He is to take office September 5.

Nagovitsyn

Russia: Vyacheslav Nagovitsyn takes office as president of Buryatia.

11

Colombia: Former foreign minister (1968-70) and president (1974-78) Alfonso López Michelsen dies.

Kozakou-M.

Cyprus: The ministers of the AKEL party, including Foreign Minister George Lillikas and Interior Minister Neoklis Silikiotis, resign from the government. On July 13 Erato Kozakou-Marcoullis is appointed as foreign minister and Christos Patsalidis as interior minister; they are sworn in July 16.
Ghana: Akwasi Osei-Adjei is appointed foreign minister. He is approved by parliament on July 27 and sworn in on July 31. Albert Kan-Dapaah becomes defense minister and Kwamena Bartels interior minister.

13

Burundi: Clotilde Nizigama is appointed finance minister in a cabinet reshuffle.
Federated States of Micronesia: Congress confirms the nominations of Lorin S. Robert as foreign secretary and Finley S. Perman as finance secretary. Robert is sworn in on July 14 and Perman on July 23.

Rivero

Spain: Paulino Rivero Baute takes office as president of the government of Canarias.

14

Palestine: Prime Minister Salam Fayyad resigns, but is immediately asked to form a new cabinet.
Papua New Guinea: In parliamentary elections held from June 30 to July 14, the National Alliance Party wins 27 of 109 seats, the Papua New Guinea Party 8, the People's Action Party 6, smaller parties 47, and independents 20.

15

Belgium: King Albert II asks Yves Leterme to form a government.
The Netherlands: Former queen's commissioner of Zuid-Holland (1984-94) Schelto Patijn dies.

16

Central African Republic: Sylvain Ndoutingai is named finance minister. On July 18 Raymond Paul Ndougou is named interior minister.
Moldova: President Vladimir Voronin appoints Vitalie Vrabie as defense minister.

17

Lake-Tack

Antigua and Barbuda: Louise Lake-Tack is sworn in as governor-general.
United States: Jim Nicholson announces his resignation as veterans affairs secretary effective October 1.

18

Martinique: Ange Mancini is appointed as prefect.

19

Azerbaijan: In presidential elections in Nagorno-Karabakh, Bako Sahakyan wins 85.1% of the vote and Masis Mayilyan 12.5%. Turnout is 77.4%.
British Virgin Islands: Former chief minister (1983-86) Cyril Romney dies.

20

Demotte

Belgium: Rudy Demotte is sworn in as minister-president of Wallonia.
Brazil: Former governor of Bahia (1971-75, 1979-83, 1991-94) Antônio Carlos Magalhães dies.

21

Patil

India: Pratibha Patil is elected president by federal and state legislators, winning 2,931 votes of a value of 638,116 (65.8%), against 1,449 votes of a value of 331,306 (34.2%) for Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. Patil takes office July 25.

22

Cameroon: In parliamentary elections, the ruling Cameroon People's Democratic Movement wins at least 152 of 180 seats.
Japan: Masaaki Osawa (Liberal-Democratic Party) wins gubernatorial elections in Gunma with 35.8% of the vote, defeating incumbent Hiroyuki Kodera (34.3%), Ryu Yamamoto (22.3%), and Shunichi Yoshimura (6.2%). Turnout is 53.4%.
Turkey: In parliamentary elections, the ruling Justice and Development Party wins 46.7% of the vote (341 of 550 seats), the Republican People's Party 20.8% (112), the Nationalist Movement Party 14.3% (70), the Democratic Party 5.4% (0), and independents 5.2% (27). Turnout is 84.2%.

23

Afghanistan: Former king (1933-73) Mohammad Zahir Shah dies.
Congo (Brazzaville): Former prime minister (1991-92) André Milongo dies.
Cook Islands: Former prime minister (1978-83, 1983-87) Sir Tom Davis dies.
New Caledonia: Marie-Noëlle Thémereau resigns as president of the government.

25

Brazil: President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva fires Defense Minister Waldir Pires and replaces him with Nelson Jobim.
Ecuador: Fausto Ortiz replaces Ricardo Patiño as economy and finance minister.
Serbia: Former chairman of the Central Committee of the League of Communists (1989-90) Bogdan Trifunovic dies.

26

Bhutan: Prime Minister Lyonpo Khandu Wangchuk resigns. Lyonpo Kinzang Dorji takes over on July 31. Among the ministers leaving office are also Finance Minister Lyonpo Wangdi Norbu and Home Affairs Minister Lyonpo Jigmi Thinley.
Nigeria: President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua swears in his cabinet, including Ojo Maduekwe as foreign minister, Yayale Ahmed as defense minister, Godwin Abbe as interior minister, and Shamsudeen Usman as finance minister.

27

Brumby

Australia: The premier of Victoria, Steve Bracks, announces his resignation. John Brumby succeeds him on July 30.

28

India: Kazi Lhendup Dorji, former prime minister (1974-75) and chief minister (1975-79) of Sikkim, dies.

29

Vanuatu: George Wells is appointed foreign minister and Joe Natuman internal affairs minister in a government reshuffle.

30

Honduras: Ángel Edmundo Orellana is named interior minister.

31

Congo (Kinshasa): The Supreme Court declares the vote of the provincial assembly of Kasaï Occidental to remove Governor Trésor Kapuku Ngoy (June 7) as unconstitutional.