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Egypt Independent
Polls in crisis-ridden Lebanon opened for a high-stakes parliamentary election on Sunday morning.
The election was the first in Lebanon since the 2019 popular uprising demanded the downfall of the ruling elite. Demonstrators had blamed political parties for widespread corruption and mismanagement of the country’s public affairs and economy. Several new political groups sprung out of the protest movement competed in Sunday’s race.
Political observers said the election was highly competitive and unpredictable. Long queues snaked out of one polling station in Tareek El-Jdeedeh neighbourhood in Beirut.
“The queues in which we stood were queues of humiliation”, said Khaled Zaatari, referring to the long lines at bakeries and petrol pumps. “This (election) queue is a queue of pride”, he added.
The Lebanese financial crisis had pushed poverty rates to a soaring 80%, a freefall of the currency and rapid decay of infrastructure. The United Nations and the World Bank have blamed the country’s leaders for exacerbating the economic depression.
Iran-backed armed political group Hezbollah emerged as a hot topic in the elections. Several political groups have vowed to try to disarm the Shia party which they claim ‘has dominated the political sphere’.
