Paris Vows to Stand by Lebanon after Electoral Law Passed
France pledged Friday to maintain support for Lebanon after the Lebanese parliament approved a new electoral law and ended months of political wrangling.
“France welcomes the Lebanese parliament's endorsement of a new electoral law,” the deputy spokesperson of the French foreign ministry said in a statement distributed by the French embassy in Beirut.
The French official said the new law launches a new phase in the work of Lebanese institutions, vowing that France “will stand by Lebanon as it seeks to preserve stability and democracy and to confront the security, economic and humanitarian challenges.”
The new law paves the way for the first parliamentary elections in nine years.
The deal comes after a stalemate that has seen the country's parliament extend its term twice since the last elections in 2009.
Under the agreement, the current parliament's term will be extended once again, but this time for just 11 months to prepare for elections under the new rules in May 2018.
The new law replaces the existing winner-takes-all voting system with proportional representation and reduces the number of electoral districts.
17 June 2017, 17:04
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Macron's Party on Course for a Landslide
(Naharnet headline today)
If they had a landslide in a Lebanese election, it would be because the Muslim majority was allowed to vote for whom it wanted, rather than having the Christian candidates be assured of getting half the seats in Parliament. I suppose you could call this stability: a no-landslide policy.
