Preparations at the Halba Serail in Akkar before the municipal elections on May 10, 2025. (Credit: Michel Hallak)
With just a few hours to go before the municipal elections in North Lebanon, the second round of voting this month, L'Orient-Le Jour put together a guide before the start of voting in the governorates of North Lebanon and Akkar.
Here is everything to know about the municipal elections:
Some figures on the municipal councils to be elected in North Lebanon and Akkar
This Sunday, from the moment the polling stations open at 7 a.m., voters from North Lebanon and Akkar are called to vote to elect municipal councils and mokhtars (local officials). Here are some facts and figures to remember about this voting day.
- The entire northern region of Lebanon is divided into two governorates: North Lebanon, which includes six districts, and Akkar. In total, across these two major administrative areas, 288 municipal councils will be elected.
- The number of municipal councils for each region is divided as follows:
In North Lebanon:
- Batroun: 31 municipal councils;
- Koura: 37 municipal councils;
- Minya-Dinniyeh: 37 municipal councils;
- Bsharri: 12 municipal councils;
- Zgharta: 32 municipal councils;
- Tripoli: five municipal councils, including that of the major city of the same name.
In different regions, several municipal councils were elected unopposed due to a lack of competition at the closure of nominations. These include, in Batroun: Douma, Rashkida, Beit Shelala; in Zgharta: Eyaal, Haret al-Fouar, Raskifa, Arjis, Kfarhata, and Kfarfou; in Koura: Baakftein, Beshmezine, Bsarma, Baataboura, Darshmezin, Aafsaddiq, Batroumin, Kousba, Kfar Saroun, and Rashdibin.
In total, approximately 648,600 voters are called to mobilize during the day in the governorate.
In Akkar: the governorate is made up of a single large district, which includes 134 municipalities where new councils are to be elected.
The total number of voters in Akkar amounts to 325,968.
What are the major lists in different regions of northern Lebanon?
For more details on the major battles to follow, read the following analysis here:
In Tripoli, four main lists are competing:
1. The Vision of Tripoli
Head of list: Abdel Hamid Karami
Political support: The list is backed by an improbable coalition including Ashraf Rifi, a hawk of the anti-Hezbollah camp, and his biggest rivals: Faysal Karami, Taha Najji, and Abdel Karim Kabbara (an independent close to Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri).
2. The Tripolitan Fabric
Head of list: Wael Zamarli
Political support: Businessman and MP Ihab Matar, former Prime Minister Najib Mikati.
3. Lel Fayha’ (Fayha' being Tripoli's nickname)
Head of list: Samer Debliz
Support: Actors of the Oct. 17 protest movement.
4. The Guardians of the City
Support: The eponymous group composed of civil society volunteers and the Islamic Group.
In Batroun:
- In Batroun itself, only one list is running, headed by Marcelino Hark, the outgoing president of the municipality.
It is supported by a coalition of major Christian parties present: Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), Lebanese Forces (LF), and Kataeb.
- In other villages of the district, such as Chekka, Aabrine, or Tannourine: the competition mainly opposes the FPM to the LF-Kataeb alliance, which can also count on the support of Majd Harb, a local political figure.
- In Hamat: the FPM faces another improbable coalition, that of LF with the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP) and the Communist Party.
In Zgharta:
- In Zgharta itself: The list supported by the Sleiman Frangieh clan, close to Hezbollah and the Amal Movement, faces an incomplete list from the protest movement.
- In other villages of the district: the Frangieh-FPM alliance faces the LF-Kataeb alliance, supported by reformist MP Michel Moawad.
In Koura and Minyeh-Denniyeh:
- The battle is mainly familial, with notable influence from local families. Political parties have limited presence, and alliances vary by village. This region is notably marked by the decline of SSNP influence, following internal dissensions and the fall of the Assad regime in Syria.
- In Bsharri, the hometown of Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea, the Lebanese Forces are expected to maintain high influence.
In Akkar
- In the Akkar governorate, made up of a single district where over 130 municipal councils are to be elected, the competition is also mainly familial.
- In some Sunni villages, the battle will oppose the Islamic Group and local families.
