Reformists surge in Lebanon polls
Reformists surge in Lebanon polls
Published: 04:05 PM,May 17,2022 | EDITED : 09:05 AM,May 18,2022
Lebanon’s Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi speaks at a press conference as he announces final results in Lebanon’s parliamentary elections at the Interior Ministry in Beirut. — AFP
BEIRUT: The Hizbullah movement and its allies lost their majority in the Lebanese parliament in weekend legislative elections, as opposition groups and rival political factions scored gains, according to official results on Tuesday.
The elections, which came while the country is suffering from its worst economic crisis, dealt a blow to Hizbullah and its allies, who only grabbed 62 seats out of the 128-member parliament. Hizbullah and its allies would have needed 65 seats to hold on to their majority in parliament. In the 2018 elections, the group and its allies, among them the Christian Free Patriotic Movement, won a majority of 71 seats in parliament.
Representatives of the 2019 protest movements, on the other hand, won an unexpected number of seats, while other Hizbullah opponents also made gains. The opposition, who call themselves the “Force of Change,” won 13 seats - significantly more than expected.
Many of the opposition candidates emerged from mass, anti-government protests that erupted in 2019. Those were directed, among other things, against widespread corruption in Lebanon. Many people blame the established parties, which have been in power for decades, for the country’s severe crisis and the political stalemate in the country.
The Free Patriotic Movement, a key Hizbullah ally, won only 18 seats in Sunday’s elections, compared to 20 seats grabbed by their rivals, the Lebanese Forces, staunch critics of Hizbullah. Sami Nader, an analyst with the Levant Institute for Strategic Affairs, said the result was a “setback” for Hizbullah, but cast doubts about whether it will bring change.
“I do not expect a drastic change to happen inside the parliament as long as the groups inside it still have power, despite their loss,” Nader said. — dpa
The elections, which came while the country is suffering from its worst economic crisis, dealt a blow to Hizbullah and its allies, who only grabbed 62 seats out of the 128-member parliament. Hizbullah and its allies would have needed 65 seats to hold on to their majority in parliament. In the 2018 elections, the group and its allies, among them the Christian Free Patriotic Movement, won a majority of 71 seats in parliament.
Representatives of the 2019 protest movements, on the other hand, won an unexpected number of seats, while other Hizbullah opponents also made gains. The opposition, who call themselves the “Force of Change,” won 13 seats - significantly more than expected.
Many of the opposition candidates emerged from mass, anti-government protests that erupted in 2019. Those were directed, among other things, against widespread corruption in Lebanon. Many people blame the established parties, which have been in power for decades, for the country’s severe crisis and the political stalemate in the country.
The Free Patriotic Movement, a key Hizbullah ally, won only 18 seats in Sunday’s elections, compared to 20 seats grabbed by their rivals, the Lebanese Forces, staunch critics of Hizbullah. Sami Nader, an analyst with the Levant Institute for Strategic Affairs, said the result was a “setback” for Hizbullah, but cast doubts about whether it will bring change.
“I do not expect a drastic change to happen inside the parliament as long as the groups inside it still have power, despite their loss,” Nader said. — dpa