Mount Lebanon municipal and mukhtars elections kick off—A walkthrough of the voting process

Report by Wissam Nasrallah, English adaptation by Yasmine Jaroudi

The first round of Lebanon’s municipal elections is set to begin within hours, covering towns and villages across the Mount Lebanon governorate.

Upon arriving at polling stations, voters must first confirm their names on the electoral list, which determines the specific polling room in which they are to vote. 

At the polling room, the head officer verifies that the voter has not already cast their ballot by checking for ink on their fingers. Voters must present a valid ID or passport, after which their names are called out loud so list delegates can log their participation.

The head officer then signs an official envelope—white for municipal elections and brown for mukhtars municipal seats. In the voting booth, voters write the names of their preferred candidates on a blank sheet, or they may use a pre-prepared list.

As the voting system is based on a majoritarian and not proportional law, voters have the right to cross out names or add candidates from other lists, provided they do not exceed the number of seats allocated to the specific municipality. 

Any additional names beyond the seat limit will be disregarded. Voters must also ensure their ballot contains no identifying marks that could invalidate it.

After placing the completed ballot in the envelope, voters return from the voting booth, place their vote into the ballot box, sign next to their name, dip their fingers in indelible ink, and collect their identification documents.