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Constitutional Challenges to the Presidential Elections in Lebanon

Publication on electoral issues, presidential vacuum and the way forward

A study on deficiencies and loopholes in the Lebanese electoral system followed by possible improvements and solutions

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After six months of negotiation and more than 10 failed attempts, Lebanese parliamentarians – divided into two main coalitions – are still unable to break the deadlock in the third presidential vacuum since the inception of the Lebanese Republic. Boycotts by the 8th of March coalition leads to lack of quorum in the parliamentary session which in turn hampered the process to find a consolidated solution to the problem. Although the presidential election shall be conducted – according to the Lebanese constitution – as per competitive voting, the legal practice indicated a different execution: a compromise was to be sealed only after rather non transparent negotiations behind closed doors between parliamentarians of the opposing blocs. Malpractices are commonly found in the application of the Lebanese Constitution. Major loopholes complicate the process to find solutions pertaining to the political system's work mechanism. In the case of the presidential election, these loopholes protrude in the lack of any constitutional mechanism to cope with a disruption of parliamentary life in the event of failure to hold elections, or a mechanism to address a crisis of parliamentary quorum to elect a president.

The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung is funding a comprehensive study on the shortcomings and loopholes the Lebanese Constitution provides, regarding the election of the President of the Republic and the competencies related to his role in order to strengthen the efficiency of the Constitution, to secure and smoothen governmental transitions in Lebanon, as well as to avoid future abuses of constitutional law by Lebanese lawmakers in the Lebanese Parliament.

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