The Democratic Rally met Thursday in Clemenceau. (Photo courtesy of the Progressive Socialist Party)
The Democratic Gathering, Walid Joumblatt’s parliamentary bloc comprising eight deputies, will support Jihad Azour’s presidential candidacy in the upcoming parliamentary session set for June 14. Azour is a former finance minister and a current senior executive at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The decision comes after Joumblatt threatened to cast a blank vote because he was insufficiently consulted during the negotiations that resulted in widespread Christian support for the former minister.
Joumblatt has now aligned himself with the anti-Hezbollah forces opposing Marada leader Sleiman Frangieh, who is endorsed by both the Amal Movement and Hezbollah.
The decision was made on Thursday after a highly anticipated meeting attended by Joumblatt, the outgoing leader of the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) and his son Taymour, in Clemenceau.
Taymour Joumblatt’s presence during the meeting raised questions about whether the Azour option was a result of his influence.
Walid Joumblatt found himself in a difficult position, torn between his refusal to support Frangieh, whom he saw as a confrontational candidate to the anti-Hezbollah factions, and his desire to respect the choice of Christians factions and find a consensus candidate.
To resolve the dilemma, he reportedly delegated the decision-making process to his son and political heir, just days before the party’s general congress, which will see the appointment of Taymour, MP for Chouf as the PSP leader.
An MP told L’Orient-Le Jour on condition of anonymity that “Taymour was an essential partner in this decision-making process.”
“Taymour wanted to translate the results of the May 2022 legislative elections into tangible outcomes,” the source added.
Essentially, Walid Joumblatt's political heir aims to represent the aspirations of voters, particularly the younger generation. However, there are additional factors influencing Joumblatt’s decision. Most notably, he was among the first to propose Azour as a consensus figure to Hezbollah, along with Salah Honein, a former MP, and Joseph Aoun, the army’s Commander-in-Chief — an approach aimed at avoiding confrontation and promoting harmony. The PSP emphasized this point in a press release issued after the meeting.
The Democratic Gathering expressed surprise at Azour being perceived as a confrontational candidate. This was prompted by the strong statements made by influential figures within Hezbollah toward the opposition and the party’s former ally, Gebran Bassil’s Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), following the announcement of their approval of Azour’s candidacy.
However, the Democratic Gathering has followed a typical Joumblattist approach. In particular, the bloc seeks to maintain good relations with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and has clarified that it does not align with any specific camp.
The party emphasized the need for dialogue to ensure a prompt presidential election.
Azour takes a first step
The PSP decision will undoubtedly boost Azour’s votes, without removing all the uncertainty surrounding next Wednesday’s session.
While waiting for the situation to clear, Azour seems to have taken his first step on the local Lebanese scene.
The IMF announced on Thursday Azour has temporarily suspended his term there.
Julie Kozcak, Director of Communications at the IMF, stated that Azour, the Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department, has temporarily stepped down from his role at the IMF to prevent any perception of a conflict of interest. The statement further mentioned that Azour has been actively engaged in leading the IMF’s Middle East and Central Asia Department since 2017, but he is currently on leave to concentrate on his presidential candidacy.
Geagea: The recent verbal escalation of recent days is unjustified
Lebanese Forces (LF) leader Samir Geagea said on Thursday that the “verbal escalation” by some Hezbollah officials in recent days, since the announcement of the support of several opposition parties and the FPM for Jihad Azour’s presidential candidacy, was “unjustified.”
Since the LF, the Kataeb, and several independent MPs, in agreement with the FPM, announced their official endorsement of Azour in the presidential race, several Hezbollah MPs and officials have responded with inflammatory speeches.
MP Hassan Fadlallah said that Azour’s candidacy is “a challenge” and that the candidate “will never ascend to Baabda.”
In an interview on the London-based Arabic-language television channel “Hala London,” Geagea said that the Amal and Hezbollah should “rejoice now that an agreement has been reached around another serious candidate, which would lead to an election.”
“The verbal escalation that we have heard in recent days is unjustified,” Geagea added, saying it showed that his political opponents “do not want the situation to get out of hand.”
“The other camp does not believe in the constitution, elections, law, and order and these kinds of principles,” he said.
Geagea hoped that the agreement around Azour’s name would lead to “broader negotiations and agreements.”
The LF leader also rejected the idea that the agreement on the presidential candidate would lead to a “Christian tripartite alliance” (conjoining the LF, the FPM, and Kataeb) in the face of Hezbollah and the Amal Movement.
“There is absolutely no Christian three-way alliance, but an agreement around the name of the next head of state,” he added, declaring that the FPM is “in a completely different place.”
This article was originally published in French in L'Orient-Le Jour. Translation by Sahar Ghoussoub.