2009 Lebanese general election

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2009 Lebanese general election
Flag of Lebanon.svg
  2005 7 June 2009 2018  

All 128 seats to the Parliament of Lebanon
Turnout55.2% Increase2.svg 8.7%
 First partySecond partyThird party
  Secretary Kerry Delivers Remarks With Former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri (Cropped on Hariri).jpg Michel Aoun with Putin 5 (cropped).jpg Nabih Berri.jpg
Leader Saad Hariri Michel Aoun Nabih Berri
Party Future Movement FPM Amal Movement
Alliance March 14 March 8 March 8
Leader's seat Beirut III Keserwan Zahrani
Last election36 seats15 seats14 seats
Seats won331914
Seat changeDecrease2.svg 3Increase2.svg 4Steady2.svg 0

 Fourth partyFifth partySixth party
  Hassan Nasrallah meets Khamenei in visit to Iran (3 8405110291 L600).jpg Walid Jumblatt ca 2006.jpg Samir Geagea (cropped).jpg
Leader Hassan Nasrallah Walid Jumblatt Samir Geagea
Party Hezbollah PSP Lebanese Forces
Alliance March 8 None March 14
Leader's seatNone Chouf None
Last election14 seats16 seats6 seats
Seats won13118
Seat changeDecrease2.svg 1Decrease2.svg 5Increase2.svg 2

 Seventh partyEighth partyNinth party
  Amine Gemayel.jpg Sleiman Frangieh 2.jpg Hagop Pakradounian cropped.png
Leader Amine Gemayel Sleiman Frangieh Hagop Pakradounian
Party Kataeb Marada Movement Tashnag
Alliance March 14 March 8 March 8
Leader's seatNone Zgharta Metn
Last election3 seats0 seats2 seats
Seats won532
Seat changeIncrease2.svg 2Increase2.svg 3Steady2.svg 0

Lebanese election 2009.png
Areas with a March 14 majority in blue, areas with a March 8 majority in orange

Prime Minister before election

Fouad Siniora
Fouad Sinora (cropped).jpg
March 14

Elected Prime Minister

Saad Hariri
Saad Hariri in Sochi, 13 September 2017.jpg
March 14

Parliamentary elections were held in Lebanon on 7 June 2009 [1] [2] to elect all 128 members of the Parliament of Lebanon.

Contents

Background

Before the election, the voting age was to be lowered from 21 to 18 years, but as this requires a constitutional amendment, it did not happen before the election. [3]

Allocation of seats

Following a compromise reached in the Doha Agreement in May 2008 between the government and opposition, a new electoral law was put in place, as shown in the table below. [4] It was passed on 29 September 2008. [5]

Seat allocation

according to The Doha Agreement [6]

Seats
14 March8 March
Beirut
19
Beirut 151--1-11--150
Beirut 24-11--2----22
Beirut 310-1511---11100
Bekaa 23Baalbek
+Hermel
10162---1---010
Zahleh71111-12---70
Rashaya
+West Bekaa
611211-----60
Mount Lebanon 35Jbeil321--------03
Kisrawan55---------05
North Metn84--2-11---26
Baabda632--1-----06
Aley52--12-----41
Chouf83-2-2-1---80
North Lebanon 28Akkar71-32---1--70
Dinniyeh
+Minieh
3--3-------30
Bsharreh22---------20
Tripoli81-51---1--80
Zgharta33---------03
Koura3---3------30
Batroun22---------20
South Lebanon 23Saida2--2-------20
Tyre4-4--------04
Zahrani3-2----1---03
Hasbaya
+Marjeyoun
5-2111-----05
Nabatiyeh3-3--------03
Bint Jbeil3-3--------03
Jezzine32-----1---03
Total 128128342727148582127157

Results

Logo of the Lebanese general election, 2009 Lebanese Election 2009.svg
Logo of the Lebanese general election, 2009

Preliminary results indicated that the turnout had been as high as 55%. [7] The March 14 Alliance garnered 71 seats in the 128-member parliament, while the March 8 Alliance won 57 seats. This result is virtually the same as the result from the election in 2005. However, the March 14 alliance saw this as a moral victory over Hezbollah, who led the March 8 Alliance, and the balance of power was expected to shift in its favor. [8] Many observers expect to see the emergence of a National Unity Government similar to that created following the Doha Agreement in 2008. [9]

Election Results for each alliance [10] Total% 14M14 March% 8M8 March
Beirut
19
Beirut 1552.1%547.9%0
Beirut 2450.5%249.5%2
Beirut 31069.6%1031.4%0
Bekaa 23Baalbek
+Hermel
1021.6%078.4%10
Zahleh752.7%747.3%0
Rashaya
+West Bekaa
653.3%646.7%0
Mount Lebanon 35Jbeil328.6%071.4%3
Kisrawan530.9%069.1%5
North Metn842.4%258.6%6
Baabda641.8%058.2%6
Aley560.2%439.8%1
Chouf869.6%830.4%0
North Lebanon 28Akkar761.1%738.9%0
Dinniyeh
+Minnieh
370.9%329.1%0
Bsharreh271.4%228.6%0
Tripoli863.5%836.5%0
Zgharta344.2%055.8%3
Koura351.1%348.9%0
Batroun250.2%249.8%0
South Lebanon 23Saida263.9%236.1%0
Tyre406.8%093.2%4
Zahrani310.0%090.0%3
Hasbaya
+Marjeyoun
521.4%078.6%5
Nabatiyeh311.6%088.4%3
Bint Jbeil305.8%094.2%3
Jezzine325.5%074.5%3
Total 12812855.5%7144.5%57

By party after the designation of Najib Mikati in January 2011

Parliament composition in june 2011 Lebanese Parliament election results
Parliament of Lebanon composition by party.svg
AlliancesSeatsPartiesSeats
Government
68
27 Change and Reform bloc
  Free Patriotic Movement (Tayyar Al-Watani Al-Horr)19
  Lebanese Democratic Party (Hizb al-democraty al-lubnany)2
  Marada Movement 3
  Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Tashnag)2
  Solidarity Party (Hizb Al-Tadamon Al-Lubnany)1
30 March 8 Alliance
  Amal Movement (Harakat Amal)13
  Loyalty to the Resistance (Hezbollah)13
  Syrian Social Nationalist Party (al-Hizb al-Qawmi al-souri al ijtima'i)2
  Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party 2
11Pro-Government Independents
  Progressive Socialist Party 7
  Glory Movement 2
  Safadi Bloc 2
Opposition
60
60 March 14 Alliance
  Future Movement (Tayyar Al Mustaqbal)29
  Lebanese Forces (al-Quwāt al-Lubnāniyya)8
  Kataeb Party (Hizb al-Kataeb)5
  Murr Bloc 2
  Social Democrat Hunchakian Party (Social Democrat Hunchakian Party)2
  Islamic Group (Jamaa al-Islamiya)1
  Armenian Democratic Liberal Party (Ramgavar Party)1
  Democratic Left Movement (ĥarakatu-l-yasāri-d-dimuqrātī)1
  National Liberal Party (Hizbu-l-waTaniyyīni-l-aHrār)1
  Independents (including ex-PSP)10
  Total128

Source

Formation of government

As is typical of Lebanese politics political wrangling after the elections took 5 months. [11] Only in November was the composition of the new cabinet agreed upon: 15 seats for the March 14 Alliance, 10 for the March 8 Alliance, and 5 nominated by Lebanese President Michel Suleiman, who has cast himself as a neutral party between the two main political blocks. [12]

Aftermath

The government fell in January 2011 after the March 8 alliance's 11 ministers withdrew from the government over PM Hariri's refusal to convene a cabinet meeting to discuss possible indictments to be issued by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. [13]

The March 8 alliance formed a new government in the ensuing six months.

See also

Related Research Articles

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References

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