Jumblat Denies Will to Withdraw from Cabinet if Proportional Representation Adopted

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat denied on Friday that he informed Prime Minister Najib Miqati or any official that his National Struggle Front ministers would withdraw from the cabinet if it adopted an electoral law based on proportional representation.

“No one proposed the proportional representation except for (Interior Minister) Marwan Charbel… No one tackled the issue with us,” Jumblat told al-Akhbar newspaper.

Sources close to Miqati ruled out any rift with Jumblat.

“If there were different opinions concerning an issue that doesn’t mean they’re at a rift,” the sources noted.

The sources stressed that Miqati will not agree on any electoral law if it doesn’t find consensus among all parties.

Media reports said on Wednesday that Jumblat warned Miqati that if the parliament approved an electoral law based on proportionality and the government adopted it then this would lead to the collapse of the government.

Officials are currently discussing the possibility of adopting an electoral law based on proportional representation.

The options include considering Lebanon a single electoral district on the basis of proportionality, or maintaining the current electoral district division with the possibility of merging the small districts in one on the basis of merging the majority election and the proportional representation systems.