Discussing Lebanon’s upcoming Elections

This week join Valeria Scuto, our Middle East Analyst, along with Anastasia Chisholm and Rhiannon Phillips, our Associate Analysts for the Middle East and North Africa to discuss the upcoming elections in Lebanon.

 

Lebanon's elections this Sunday, 15 May, will take place amid a protracted economic crisis and persistent resentment against political elites. Despite the common perception that government corruption and ineptitude are to blame for the country's socio-economic deterioration, many Lebanese residents are uncertain of their ability to change the political status quo through their ballots.

 

Meanwhile, the international community will closely watch electoral processes, amid concerns that the announcement of final results will face delays driven by contestation from losing parties. As such, the weeks following the vote will represent a key flashpoint for domestic unrest. In addition, delays to government formation or obstructions to political and economic reforms will undermine the government's ability to secure third-party donor funding from institutions such as the International Monetary Fund, likely further exacerbating Lebanon's economic collapse in the coming months.