The king has “assigned” Hun Manet as prime minister to form a government for the National Assembly’s new seventh mandate, according to a royal decree circulated by his father Hun Sen.

The letter is dated today, August 7, and comes two days after the National Election Committee released finalized election results for the July 23 election.

The royal decree, posted on Facebook by Hun Sen and others, says Hun Manet has been assigned as prime minister to form the government, and must receive a confidence vote from the National Assembly.

National Assembly members are expected to be sworn in on August 22.

The appointment appears to be based on constitutional changes last year that shifted the responsibility of proposing a new prime minister from the president of the National Assembly to the party with the most seats:

The Constitution’s Article 119, old and new, based on an unofficial translation:

Old

New

Upon the proposal of the President of the National Assembly in agreement with the two Vice-Presidents, the King assigns a high ranking personality among the Members of National Assembly from the election winning party, to form the Royal Government.

Upon the proposal of a party with more seats than others in the National Assembly, the King assigns a high ranking personality as a Prime Minister to form the Royal Government. The proposal from the party with the most seats in the National Assembly must give a copy for the President of the National Assembly. A high ranking personality who would be appointed as a Prime Minister has to be a lawmaker with single Khmer nationality and has to be chosen from a party that has more seats than others in the National Assembly.

Kamnotra is profiling the National Assembly’s 125 incoming lawmakers as well as Hun Manet’s new cabinet ministers as they are announced as Prime Minister Hun Sen transfers power to his son.