Efforts to Reach New Electoral Law Stumble as 1960 Law Chances Surge

Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq's declaration that it will be difficult to pass a new electoral law before the deadlines expire has given the impression that the country is headed once again to the controversial 1960 law.

“Mashnouq's remarks and the continued fruitless debate regarding the electoral law indicate that the parliamentary elections will likely be held under the 1960 law that was amended by the Doha Accord in 2008,” al-Joumhouria newspaper quoted “prominent” parliamentary sources as saying in remarks published Sunday.

“This is a fact that should not be overlooked, even if some try to deny it, and the truth must be said as it is,” the sources added.

Ruling out consensus over a new electoral law, the sources noted that “each party has its calculations and no one wants to offer concessions.”

“Some parties want to seize control of the new parliament in order to control political life in the country,” the sources added.

Hizbullah has repeatedly called for an electoral law fully based on proportional representation but other political parties, especially the Progressive Socialist Party and al-Mustaqbal Movement, have rejected the proposal, arguing that the party's controversial arsenal of arms would prevent serious competition in regions where the Iran-backed party has clout.

Mustaqbal, the Lebanese Forces and the PSP have meanwhile proposed a hybrid electoral law that mixes the proportional representation and the winner-takes-all systems. Speaker Nabih Berri has also proposed a hybrid law.

The country has not voted for a parliament since 2009, with the legislature instead twice extending its own mandate.

The 2009 polls were held under an amended version of the 1960 electoral law and the next elections are scheduled for May 2017.