Mongolia’s political crisis deepened Monday after President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh vetoed parliament’s vote to dismiss Prime Minister Gombojav Zandanshatar, citing procedural violations during last week’s session.
A majority of lawmakers had voted on Friday to remove Zandanshatar amid weeks of political infighting and a dispute over a new taxation policy on mineral exporters.
Both men belong to the ruling Mongolian People’s Party, but the president’s office declared the vote invalid, saying parliament lacked a quorum when it convened to oust the premier.
“The session began without the required quorum, rendering the decision unconstitutional,” said Uilstuguldur Altankhuyag, head of the presidential office, alongside Byambajargal Altangerel, secretary of the National Security Council.
Mongolia’s Constitutional Court is scheduled to review the veto on Wednesday.
Zandanshatar, a former chief of staff to President Khurelsukh, took office in June 2025 following nationwide protests led largely by young Mongolians angered by corruption, inequality, and elite privilege.
Those demonstrations forced out his predecessor, Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene, who lost a no-confidence vote after weeks of unrest in the capital, Ulaanbaatar.
The current standoff underscores deep divisions within the ruling party and a broader crisis of public confidence in Mongolia’s political class — in a country heavily dependent on its vast mineral wealth and exports to neighboring China.
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