According to the results of confidence votes on 47 top Vietnamese officials, NA deputy chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan has the highest number of “high confidence” votes, 372, while Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Nguyen Minh Quang gets the lowest, 83.

The vote, the first-ever event that was conducted in the form of a ballot on Monday by the National Assembly or NA (the country’s legislature) with 492 deputies present, specifies three degrees of confidence: high, medium and low.

Ngan was followed by Truong Thi Mai, chairwoman of the NA’s Committee of Social Issues, who got 335 votes of high confidence, and President Truong Tan Sang, who received 330 votes. Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung got 210 votes of high confidence. The vote, to be held every year, was carried out on 47 top officials who hold positions elected or approved by the NA. Before the votes, these officials had submitted reports on their work performance, including law obedience, ethics and lifestyle, to NA deputies for consideration.

According to regulations, those who are given “low confidence” by more than half of the total number of deputies “can apply for a resignation”. Those who get “low confidence” from more than two-thirds of the total number of deputies or those who are given “low confidence” by more than half of the total number of deputies for two consecutive years will be subject to another round of voting.