LOW VOTER TURNOUT WORRIES POLITICIANS

BEIRUT Lebanon’s first national elections in nine years were marked by a tepid turnout Sunday, reflecting voter frustration over endemic corruption and a stagnant economy. Politicians urged citizens to vote and security forces struggled to maintain order as fights broke out in and around polling stations.

President Michel Aoun appealed to voters to vote in a televised address an hour before polls closed. “If you want change, you should exercise your right” to vote, he said in a message published on Twitter at the same time.

The elections are the first since war broke out in neighbouring Syria in 2011, sending over one million refugees to Lebanon, a small country with an estimated population of around 4.5 million. The war has divided the country, pitting parties supporting the Iran-sponsored Hezbollah’s intervention in Syria to aid President Bashar Assad against Saudi-aligned parties opposed to it.

Early results were expected to start coming in later Sunday, but official results are not expected to be announced before Monday.

But low turnout — between 30 and 40 per cent in Beirut precincts according to the country’s National News Agency — betrayed widespread voter apathy for the main political currents governing the country and left open the possibility that outside candidates could win seats in Parliament.

More than 500 candidates are running for 128 seats in Lebanon’s National Assembly.