1953 Lebanese general election

1953 Lebanese general election

←  1951 12 July–9 August 1953 1957  →

Party Leader Vote % Seats +/– Constitutional Bloc 3 −2 National Bloc Raymond Eddé 3 0 Kataeb Pierre Gemayel 1 −2 PSP Kamal Jumblatt 1 −1 ARF 1 −1 Independent – 35 −27 This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below. Prime Minister before Prime Minister after Saeb Salam Unaffiliated Abdallah El-Yafi Unaffiliated

General elections were held in Lebanon between 12 July and 9 August 1953, the first under the new electoral system which allowed candidates to win with a plurality of votes, rather than requiring a second round. ^[1] Independent candidates won the majority of seats. Voter turnout was 50.0%. ^[2] Candidate Kazem al-Khalil of Tyre constituency won unopposed.

Results

Party		Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	Constitutional Bloc			3	–2
	National Bloc			3	0
	Kataeb Party			1	–2
	Armenian Revolutionary Federation			1	–1
	Progressive Socialist Party			1	–1
	Armenian Democratic Liberal Party			0	0
	Independents			35	–27
Total				44	–33
Total votes		389,932	–
Registered voters/turnout		780,053	49.99
Source: Nohlen et al.

Elected Members

List of elected members
Constituency	Elected member	Name in Arabic	Affiliation		Demographic
Beirut I Medawar	Movses Der Kalustyan	موسيس دركالوستيان		Tashnag	Armenian Orthodox
Beirut II Achrafieh - Rmeil - Saifi	Alfred Naccache	الفرد نقاش		Naccache-Tueni Alliance	Maronite
	Ghassan Tueni	غسّان التويني		Syrian Nationalist-supported Independent Naccache-Tueni Alliance	Greek Orthodox
Beirut III Mazraa	Abdallah El-Yafi	عبد الله اليافي		Independent	Sunni
Beirut IV Ras Beirut - Moussaitbeh - Zuqaq al-Blat - Bachoura	Abdullah al-Hajj	عبد الله الحاج		Progressive Socialist-supported Independent	Shiite
	Sami Solh	سامي الصلح		Solh-Osseiran Alliance	Sunni
Beirut V Minet El Hosn - Dar Mreisse - Port	Joseph Chader	جوزيف شادر		Kataeb	Minority
Tripoli I	Hashem al-Husseini	هاشم الحسيني		Independent	Sunni
Tripoli II	Rashid Karami	رشيد كرامي		Karami	Sunni
Danniyeh	Nasouh Agha al-Fadel	نصوح آغا الفاضل		Fadel	Sunni
Koura	Fouad Ghosn	فؤاد غصن		Ghosn	Greek Orthodox
Bsharri	Saeed Touq	سعيد طوق		Independent	Maronite
Zgharta	Hamid Frangieh	حميد فرنجية		Constitutional Frangieh	Maronite
Batroun	Jean Harb	جان حرب		Harb	Maronite
Akkar	Bashir al-Uthman	بشير العثمان		Aboud Alliance	Sunni
	Raouf Hanna	رؤوف حنا		Aboud Alliance	Greek Orthodox
Baakleen - Joun	Naim Moghabghab	نعيم مغبغب		Moghabghab-Takieddine Alliance	Greek Catholic
	Kamal Jumblatt	كمال جنبلاط		Progressive Socialist Jumblatt-Rizk Alliance	Druze
Aley	Georges Akl	جورج عقل		National Akl-Arslan Alliance	Maronite
	Majid Arslan	مجيد أرسلان		Akl-Arslan Alliance	Druze
Deir al Qamar	Emile Bustani	اميل البستاني		Bustani-Barjawi Alliance	Maronite
	Ahmed al-Barjawi	أحمد البرجاوي		Bustani-Barjawi Alliance	Sunni
Baabda	Bashir al-Awar	بشير الأعور		Awar-Eddé Alliance	Druze
	Pierre Eddé	بيار إده		National Awar-Eddé Alliance	Maronite
Matn	Gabriel al-Murr	غبريال المرّ		Murr-Lahoud Alliance	Greek Orthodox
	Emile Lahoud	اميل لحود		Murr-Lahoud Alliance	Maronite
Burj Hammoud	Dikran Tosbat	ديكران توسباط		Independent	Armenian Orthodox
Jbeil	Raymond Eddé	ريمون إده		National	Maronite
Al Futouh	Maurice Zouein	موريس زوين		Independent	Maronite
Keserwan	Clovis al-Khazen	كلوفيس الخازن		Constitutional	Maronite
Sidon	Nazih al-Bizri	نزيه البزري		Independent	Sunni
Zahrani	Adel Osseiran	عادل عسيران		Osseiran	Shiite
Nabatieh	Youssef al-Zein	يوسف الزين		Zein	Shiite
Jezzine - Maghdouche	Maroun Kanaan	مارون كنعان		Kanaan-Salem Alliance	Maronite
	Nikola Salem	نقولا سالم		Kanaan-Salem Alliance	Greek Catholic
Marjeyoun - Hasbaya	Kamel Asaad	كامل الاسعد		Asaad	Shiite
Tyre	Kazem al-Khalil	كاظم الخليل		Khalil	Shiite
Bint Jbeil	Ahmed Asaad	أحمد الأسعد		Asaad	Shiite
Zahle - East Bekaa	Joseph Skaff	جوزيف سكاف		Skaff-Hrawi Alliance	Greek Catholic
	Georges al-Hrawi	جورج الهراوي		Skaff-Hrawi Alliance	Maronite
Rashaya - West Bekaa	Adeeb al-Farzli	أديب الفرزلي		Farzli-Qadri Alliance	Greek Orthodox
	Nazem Qadri	ناظم القادري		Farzli-Qadri Alliance	Sunni
Baalbek	Salim Haidar	سليم حيدر		Independent	Shiite
Hermel	Sabri Hamadeh	صبري حمادة		Constitutional	Shiite

Reelected Candidates:

• Movses Der Kalustyan (Beirut I)
• Ghassan Tueni (Beirut II)
• Abdallah El-Yafi (Beirut III)
• Abdullah al-Hajj (Beirut IV)
• Sami Solh (Beirut IV)
• Joseph Chader (Beirut V)
• Hashem al-Husseini (Tripoli I)
• Rashid Karami (Tripoli II)
• Nasouh Agha al-Fadel (Danniyeh)
• Hamid Frangieh (Zgharta)
• Bashir al-Uthman (Akkar)
• Kamal Jumblatt (Baakleen-Joun)
• Majid Arslan (Aley)
• Emile Bustani (Deir al Qamar)
• Bashir al-Awar (Baabda)
• Pierre Eddé (Baabda)
• Emile Lahoud (Matn)
• Dikran Tosbat (Burj Hammoud)
• Maroun Kanaan (Jezzine-Maghdouche)
• Nikola Salem (Jezzine-Maghdouche)
• Ahmed Asaad (Bint Jbeil)
• Nazem Qadri (Rashaya-West Bekaa)
• Sabri Hamadeh (Hermel)

Electoral districts

Bourj Hammoud

The incumbent parliamentarian Dikran Tosbath, who had won his seat in the 1951 parliamentary election as an anti-Tashnag candidate, sought re-election. He was a close associate of President Camille Chamoun. As the Tashnag Party prioritized good relations with the government they threw their support behind Tosbath. Tosbath was also supported by the National Bloc. The Hunchag-Ramgavar-Independent Group alliance opted not to contest the Bourj Hammoud seat, concentrating their efforts in the Beirut I – Medawar seat instead. Hoping to benefit from the absence of other opposition candidates in Bourj Hammoud, the Lebanese Communist Party fielded Artin Madoyan. ^[3]

4,696 out of the 15,895 registered voters (29.54%) cast their ballots on July 12, 1953. The electoral participation in Bourj Hammoud was the lowest in all of the Mount Lebanon Governorate. ^[4] Tosbath won the election by a wide margin, obtaining 3,929 votes (83.67%) against 709 votes (15.11%) for Madoyan. ^{[4] [5]}

Bint Jbeil

The Bint Jbeil electoral district was created in 1953, as a single-member constituency. ^[6] In the 1953 parliamentary election the seat was won by Ahmad al-As'ad, a powerful Shia landlord. His main opponent in the election had been the nationalist candidate Ali Bazzi. ^[7]

Beirut V - Minet el Hosn

Beirut V - Minet el Hosn covered three neighbourhoods (quartiers) of the capital Beirut; Minet El Hosn, Dar Mreisse and Port and was attributed to a single Christian Minority seat. ^[8] The district elected a single parliamentarian, belonging to Minorities. ^[9] The district had 13,890 registered voters. ^[9] The contenders for the Beirut V seat were Joseph Chader, Edmond Rabbath, Farid Jubran, Chafic Nassif and Jemil Attié. ^[10] The Falangist Joseph Chader won with 2,081 votes and obtained the only seat for the Kataeb Party. ^[11]

References

1. Dieter Nohlen, Florian Grotz & Christof Hartmann (2001) Elections in Asia: A data handbook, Volume I, p183 ISBN   0-19-924958-X
2. Nohlen et al., p184
3. Messerlian, Zaven. Armenian Participation in the Lebanese Legislative Elections 1934–2009. Beirut: Haigazian University Press, 2014. pp. 119-120, 122, 126, 129-130
4. Messerlian, Zaven. Armenian Participation in the Lebanese Legislative Elections 1934–2009. Beirut: Haigazian University Press, 2014. pp. 119-120, 122, 126, 129-130
5. Laḥd Khāṭir; ʻAbd Allāh Mallāḥ (1996). الانتخابات النيابية في تاريخ لبنان. منشورات دار لحد خاطر،.
6. JPRS Report: Near East & South Asia (91013 ed.). Foreign Broadcast Information Service. 1991. p. 36.
7. Rodger Shanahan (5 November 2005). The Shi'a of Lebanon: Clans, Parties and Clerics. I.B.Tauris. pp. 68–69. ISBN   978-1-85043-766-6.
8. John Pierre Entelis (1974). Pluralism and Party Transformation in Lebanon: Al-Kataʼib, 1936-1970. BRILL. p. 135. ISBN   90-04-03911-2.
9. Messerlian, Zaven. Armenian Participation in the Lebanese Legislative Elections 1934–2009. Beirut: Haigazian University Press, 2014. pp. 119-120, 129-130, 135
10. Messerlian, Zaven. Armenian Participation in the Lebanese Legislative Elections 1934–2009. Beirut: Haigazian University Press, 2014. pp. 119-120, 129-130, 135
11. Majid, Al Raeed. "تاريخ الإنتخابات النيابية من الآستانة إلى الدوحة (14)". Al Liwaa (in Arabic). Retrieved 25 January 2025.