Xaysomphone Phomvihane, who had served as president of Laos’ National Assembly since 2021, died Aug. 8, 2026, at 69, Vientiane Times reported, citing an official Party Central Committee announcement that identified severe inflammation of the blood vessels, or vasculitis, as the cause.
He served as deputy governor and then governor of Savannakhet Province from 1989 to 1995, with responsibility for trade and foreign economic relations. As finance minister from 1995 to 1997, he represented Laos at the annual meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund in 1995, where he argued for continued outside financing for development and social needs.
His senior parliamentary work began in 2001, when he chaired the National Assembly’s Foreign Affairs Committee. He later became a vice president of the Assembly and joined its Standing Committee, the senior committee, while also leading the Assembly’s party organization. In 2016, he joined the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party Politburo, the top leadership body of Laos’ ruling party. Lawmakers elected him president of the ninth National Assembly in 2021. In that role, he led the body responsible for making laws and overseeing executive and judicial bodies.
From 2023 to 2024, he served as president of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly, a regional forum for cooperation among Southeast Asian parliaments. He presided over its 45th General Assembly in Vientiane in October 2024, when six standing committees met and the forum held 15 dialogues with observer parliaments and organizations.
At the inaugural session of Laos’ 10th National Assembly in March 2026, lawmakers re-elected him president with 100 percent approval. The session adopted 20 resolutions and approved five committees and the cabinet office.
