Daghestan Lawmakers To Vote On New President

University professor Magomedsalam Magomedov

MAKHACHKALA, Russia -- Lawmakers in the southern Russian republic of Daghestan are set to vote today on a new president.

Magomedsalam Magomedov was nominated for the post by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on February 8.

If approved, Magomedov, a university professor, would succeed Mukhu Aliyev, whose term ends on February 20.

Daghestan is located in Russia's volatile, mainly Muslim, North Caucasus, a region of frequent insurgent attacks.

Medvedev has called the violence there Russia's biggest domestic problem.