Lebanon’s Hezbollah suffers election losses
LEBANON’S militant Hezbollah group and its oldest allies seem to have suffered losses in this week’s parliamentary elections, with preliminary results yesterday showing their strongest opponents declaring significant gains and some of their traditional partners routed out of the legislature amid the collapse of the economy, which pushed the country to the brink of becoming a failed state.
Despite the apparent setback, Hezbollah and its main Shiite ally, the Amal group of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, are likely to retain the 27 seats allocated to the sect. It was not clear, however, whether the Iran-backed group and its allies would hang on to the majority they have held since 2018, when they had 71 of the 128 seats in parliament.
Meanwhile, independents, including those from the 2019 protest movement, scooped up at least 10 seats, a major achievement considering they went into the vote fragmented and facing intimidation and threats by entrenched mainstream parties. Their showing sends a strong message to ruling class politicians who have held on to their seats despite a devastating economic collapse that has plunged the majority of the country into poverty. The mixed bag ensures a sharply polarized parliament with lawmakers who will likely find it difficult to work together to pass the laws needed to begin the financial recovery and support a government with enormous challenges that lie ahead.
Prime Minister Najib Mikati, who is hoping to return as head of a postelection government, urged groups and independents who will be represented in the new parliament to move quickly.
With votes still being counted, unofficial results showed Hezbollah’s Christian ally, the Free Patriotic Movement, losing ground to its traditional Christian rivals, the rightwing Lebanese Forces.
The closely watched elections were the first since a devastating economic crisis erupted in Lebanon in October 2019, triggering nationwide protests.
Voter turnout was said to be at 41% – less than the 49% in the last election.
According to early results announced by each of the groups, independents were able to remove several longtime politicians from parliament, including Hezbollah-allied Druze politician Talal Arslan.
The Saudi-backed Christian Lebanese Forces party, which has been among the most vocal critics of the Iran-armed Hezbollah, appeared to be the biggest winner. The civil-war era faction said it won at least 20 seats, adding five members from the 2018 vote. This would make it the largest Christian bloc in parliament, replacing the Free Patriotic Movement that has been a Hezbollah ally since 2006.
Asaad Hardan, a strong Hezbollah ally in south Lebanon, reportedly lost his seat to an independent.