Initial Results of Municipal Polls Emerge, Civic Hopes Dashed
A grassroots campaign that aimed to take on Lebanon's paralyzed political system appeared to be heading for failure on Monday as entrenched parties declared victory in municipal elections in Beirut.
Authorities are expected to announce later today the official results for the elections held on Sunday in the capital and in two provinces in the Bekaa region.
They were the first elections of any kind in Lebanon since the last municipal polls in 2010, in a country with a deeply divided political scene that has not had a president for the past two years nor voted for a parliament since 2009.
In Beirut, hopes had been high that a new list of independents -- Beirut Madinati, Arabic for "Beirut is my city" -- could take on an established political class accused of incompetence and corruption.
But former premier Saad Hariri said in a statement issued on Monday that an alliance he and other traditional politicians back in the capital -- the Beiruti List -- had won all 24 seats on its council.
"The head of the Beiruti List for the municipal elections, Jamal Itani... announced that, according to initial results from its electoral apparatus, the list won the battle completely in its favor," he said.
A candidate from civil society initiative Beirut Madinati said that even if the list did not win any seats, it had at least shaken up the political establishment.
Beirut Madinati's program to attract frustrated voters had included plans to improve public transport in the traffic-clogged capital, introduce more green spaces, make housing affordable and implement a lasting waste management solution.
Lebanese civil society gained momentum after angry protests last summer over an enduring political crisis that saw trash pile up on streets.
But Hilal Khashan, head of the political science department at the American University in Beirut, said civil society is still weak in Lebanon.
"It comes up against the country's sectarian political system. It's disconnected from the political process," he said.
He added that Beirut Madinati -- whose list included teachers and artists such as famed actress and filmmaker Nadine Labaki -- was a cultural elite that had not yet managed to reach the general public.
"The civil society movement started to develop last summer but it definitely can't create political awareness in two or three months," he said.
"But what happened is just a beginning and Beirut Madinati was able to make its mark on the political map."
Traditional lists
Lebanon has been without a president since May 2014, when the mandate of Michel Suleiman expired, because the country's Christians, Sunni and Shiite Muslims and Druze cannot agree on a candidate.
The country's political scene is sharply divided, with the government split roughly between a bloc led by Hizbullah -- backed by Tehran and Damascus -- and another headed by Hariri -- supported by Riyadh and Washington.
The rival blocs however banded together in the capital to support the same list against Beirut Madinati.
Turnout was low in the capital on Sunday with only 20 percent of registered voters casting votes, Interior Minister Nouhad Mashnouk said.
But it was much higher in the Bekaa region, dominated by Hizbullah, at around 50 percent.
The Hizbullah-backed lists in Bekaa won in most municipalities, initial results showed.
In the district of Baalbek, the Development and Loyalty list backed by the party has registered a clear triumph.
The results indicated a success for the list in the eastern town and the border town of Brital.
Hizbullah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Qassem said in a press conference on Monday: “Bekaa has succeeded in breaking the obstruction that has plagued the state and was able to successfully complete the electoral process.
“I hereby announce the success of our lists in Baalbek and Brital,” he said.
In the Christian-majority town of Zahle, a list of candidates from Christian parties won all seats on the council. The list is headed by the town's former municipal chief Bassel al-Hujeiri.
The lists that competed in Arsal were three: A list headed by the town's mayor Ali al-Hujeiri, another headed by Bassel al-Hujeiri, while the third was supported by the al-Mustaqbal movement.
In the eastern town of Zahle, Lebanese Forces bloc MP Jospeh Maalouf said that the list backed by his party, the Free Patriotic Movement and the Kataeb have won the whole 21 seats in the election.
Source: Agence France Presse, Naharnet
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