A voter casting her ballot in Beirut during the 2022 legislative elections. (Credit: João Sousa/L'Orient-Le Jour)
After a three-year delay, Lebanon is holding elections for municipal councils and mukhtars, starting May 4. The elections, which will take place over four consecutive Sundays, have been repeatedly postponed by Parliament since 2022, first due to the socioeconomic crisis and later, in 2024, due to the war between Hezbollah and Israel in southern Lebanon.
Unlike previous elections, married women will now be allowed to run either in their hometowns or in their husbands'.
With less than a month to go before voting begins, here are the key eligibility and application details:
Who can run?
Any Lebanese citizen aged 25 or older and enjoying full civil rights may run for municipal council or mukhtar positions.
- Men must run in their hometowns, where their name appears on the electoral roll.
- Women may run in their hometowns or their husbands' hometowns.
Applications can be submitted after the Interior Ministry opens the registration process. The deadline for candidacy is 10 days before the scheduled vote in each area.
Required documents
Candidates must submit the following:
- A notarized declaration of candidacy.
- An electronic individual civil status record.
- A criminal record extract issued within the past month.
- A certified copy of the electoral roll listing their name, ratified by the secretary of the electoral registration commission.
- A nonrefundable deposit of LL 10 million (approximately $112), paid to the Finance Ministry. This is a significant increase from the previous fee of LL 500,000, introduced under the 2024 budget.
Candidates must file their complete application with the relevant qaimaqam (district governor) or municipality. Within three days, they will be notified whether their candidacy has been accepted or rejected. In case of rejection, the candidate may appeal to the Council of State within one week. If the council does not respond within five days, the candidacy is considered accepted by default.
The names of accepted candidates will be posted at the entrance of the respective municipalities.
Call for postponement rejected
Change MPs Mark Daou and Waddah Sadek submitted a draft law proposing a brief postponement of the elections to allow for electoral reforms. The initiative has reportedly run into strong opposition from various political stakeholders.
As it stands, elections are set as follows:
- May 4: Mount Lebanon governorate
- May 11: North Lebanon and Akkar
- May 18: Beirut and the Bekaa
- May 25: South Lebanon and Nabatieh governorates
