 He was elected to the National Assembly in the December 2002 parliamentary election from the Betioky Sud district in Toliara Province under the banner of the Tiako I Madagasikara (TIM) party, receiving 56% of the vote in his district.On January 21, 2003, he was elected as president of the National Assembly, receiving 113 out of 146 votes.In April 2006, Lahiniriko visited Iran and while there commented positively on Iran's nuclear programme.