Estonia assembly again fails to elect president .
TALLINN 1996-08-27
Estonia 's parliament again failed to elect a new state president on Tuesday when neither of two candidates secured a majority in second-round voting .
Incumbent president Lennart Meri won 49 votes compared to 34 won by his rival , deputy Parliamentary Speaker Arnold Ruutel .
But Meri 's support was not enough for the 68 needed for election and a third secret ballot will take place later in the day ( 1300 GMT ) , parliamentary officials said .
To win a clear mandate for the five-year presidential term , a candidate must secure 68 votes from the 101-member parliament .
Enn Markvart , Chairman of the National Election Commission , said 96 members of parliament voted in the second round , with 12 abstentions and one ballot paper invalid .
On Monday , in the first round of voting , Meri secured 45 votes and Ruutel 34 .
Meri 's popularity has suffered in recent years , with politicians criticising him for taking too much power and acting without consulting parliament .
If a third round of voting fails to give either candidate 68 votes , the parliamentary speaker has to convene an electoral college of all 101 MPs and 273 local government representatives for a new vote that could take up to a month .