The electoral ticket “Tripoli’s Decision” backed by Minister Ashraf Rifi issued Thursday a statement whereby it called on Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq to order a recount of the votes cast during the elections for the municipality of Tripoli.
In the statement, the members said that “the vote counting at the Serail was marred by many flaws, including the failure to examine the invalid votes, in addition to the exhaustion of the judges who were given the responsibility of 60 polling centers each, compared to an average of 20 centers for each judge in Beirut.”
“Although we won a clear majority at the municipal council, and while we remain keen on maintaining transparency and preserving the rightful representation of the minorities, we urge the interior minister, who has not yet declared the official results, to order a recount of the votes,” the statement read.
“This comes as one of our candidates Farah Issa lost the municipal seat by a difference of tens of votes, while our statistics indicate her success, which allows the minorities to be represented,” the statement added, noting that the minister had deemed the absence of minorities from the municipal council in Tripoli as a crime.