The diaspora has mobilized to cast their votes amid massive dissatisfaction with the current political class.
240,000 Lebanese expats, who have registered to vote, have been scheduled to cast their ballots from their countries of residence on May 6th, and May 7th.
On Friday, the Lebanese diaspora living in 10 countries, including Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iran, Egypt, and Iraq have “inaugurated” the 2022 parliamentary elections.
According to the delegate of the state-run media agency NNA, the number of voters in these countries as of 3:10 pm Beirut time was 11,268 or 36.43%.
The highest participation was noted so far in Qatar, followed by Saudi Arabia (mostly in Riyadh), then Kuwait.
- Iran 422 voters, or 65.73%
- Qatar 3009, or 40.97%
- Kuwait 2080, or 36.11%
- Jordan 203, or 42.03%
- Bahrain 282, or 44.20%
- Syria 570, or 55.98%
- Saudi Arabia: Riyadh 2550, or 29.47% – Jeddah 148, or 32.30%
- Oman 433, or 47.95%
- Iraq: Baghdad 17, or 16.83% – Rotana 94, or 41.59%
- Egypt – Cairo 119, or 20.91% – Alexandria 51, or 36.43%
It is to note that, on this first day of the Elections, the Live Voting Monitors at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs went out of service for more than 15 minutes, triggering complaints.
The voting process from the diaspora is not without challenges. The Arab Reform Initiative and the Policy Initiative published on Monday a new report in that regard, examining the diaspora choices for the 2022 elections in contrast to 2018.
“Looking at the results disaggregated by country can show where the diaspora will be more likely to vote for anti-establishment or independent parties,” the study reported.
“While one would expect a shift in voting behavior in this upcoming election given the disastrous situation in the country, the scale of this change is unknown […] as political dynamics amongst Lebanese diaspora communities are badly understood,” said the report.
However, the elections are considered by many as a chance to change the current status quo of the traditional Lebanese political system that rendered one of the worst economic crises since the 19th century.
It has also induced the obstruction of investigations of assassinations, such as the case of the slain Slim Lokman, among others, and the mass-killing of the Beirut Blast which also caused millions of material losses.
That is to add to the years-long of rampant corruption that has brought Lebanon to collapse.
Related:
Here’s Everything You Need To Know About Voting From The Diaspora For Lebanon’s Elections.
Here’s The Detailed List Of Who’s Running In The Lebanese Elections In 2022.
