Nepal’s lawmakers will elect its first president on Saturday, with Ram Raja Prasad Singh, the Maoist-backed candidate, likely to be the first head of state of the world’s newest republic. Nepal abolished its monarchy in May.

All of the three largest political parties in the newly elected Constituent Assembly have fielded candidates from the Madhesi, the southern ethnic group that has been the source of unrest since the Maoists laid down their arms two years ago.