Live blog update| Lebanon Votes
This is an entry from: Lebanon votes for first time since economic crash

'A sense of democracy dominating the atmosphere'

15 May 2022 16:58 BST

With just minutes to go until polls close, campaigners of traditional Christian parties the Free Patriotic Movement, the Lebanese Forces and Kataeb were stationed almost shoulder to shoulder with opposition independent lists, including Li Watani and Beirut Madinati in the Beirut I constituency. 

“There has been a sense of democracy dominating the atmosphere in this area,” Li Watani representative Omar Khalaf told MEE. “We haven’t seen any clashes or hurdles so far.” 

Representatives of candidates from the mainstream Christian parties, Lebanese Forces (L) and Kataeb (R), observe the parliamentary elections at a polling station in Beirut (AFP)
Representatives of candidates from the mainstream Christian parties, Lebanese Forces (L) and Kataeb (R), observe the parliamentary elections at a polling station in Beirut (AFP)

“We are very disappointed, however, in the voter turnout which is incredibly low so far, with one hour left to go,” Khalaf added.

“We came here today expecting a low turnout but not this low. The Lebanese population had a chance to turn things around today but let’s see if they actually used this chance.”