Prime Minister Nawaf Salam speaking at a press conference at the Grand Serail, on Feb. 20, 2026. (Credit: Mohammad Yassine/L'Orient-Le Jour)
BEIRUT — Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Tuesday again referred the issue of expatriate voting procedures in the upcoming May parliamentary elections back to Parliament, saying the current electoral law requires “legislative action.”
In an interview published Tuesday by the Lebanese daily Nidaa al-Watan, close to the Lebanese Forces, Salam said the government completed all measures within its authority and put administrative and logistical preparations on track.
“However, implementation of the 16th constituency and the mechanism for adopting the magnetic card require legislative action,” he said, adding that the government stands ready to hold elections on schedule based on decisions issued by the Interior Ministry.
The electoral law adopted in 2017 stipulates, in an article suspended in the 2018 and 2022 elections, that expatriates elect six MPs from abroad, forming a 16th constituency. The provision cannot be implemented without either a government decree or a new parliamentary law clarifying its mechanism. The executive and legislative branches have traded responsibility over the matter.
Salam’s government and the pro-amendment camp led by the Lebanese Forces favor allowing expatriates to vote for all 128 MPs based on their home districts, a move that would require suspending the disputed article of the 2017 law. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has repeatedly refused to put the issue on the parliamentary agenda.
‘Only Parliament can postpone the vote’
“The only authority constitutionally empowered to postpone the electoral deadline is Parliament,” Salam said, in an apparent response to Berri, who told the pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat on Sunday that “whoever wishes to postpone them must assume responsibility and not shift it to others.”
The deadlock over expatriate voting has fueled speculation about a possible postponement of the elections — and an extension of Parliament’s mandate — a scenario some political parties may not oppose, according to observers.
Quintet ambassadors — the United States, France, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Egypt — have reportedly urged Berri to delay the vote, a request he said he rejected.
According to information obtained by L’Orient-Le Jour, U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa proposed a postponement last week, arguing that priority should be given to consolidating the state’s monopoly on arms, including the disarmament of Hezbollah.
Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah on Tuesday denounced what he described as an “attempt to impose an extension of Parliament in Lebanon through the meddling of foreign countries (…) for reasons unrelated to our national interests.”
He said the pressure was aimed at exploiting the aftermath of what he called Israeli aggression against Lebanon, adding that Hezbollah’s support base remained cohesive and that unity with the Amal Movement was intact.
Disarmament pace linked to Paris conference
In his interview, Salam also addressed the issue of Hezbollah’s disarmament. He said the pace of implementing the plan north of the Litani River would depend on “several factors,” notably the outcome of an international conference to support the Lebanese Army scheduled for next month in Paris.
“The countries organizing the conference — the United States, France and Saudi Arabia — will ensure that the conditions are met for its success,” he said.
Army Chief Rodolph Haykal last week requested four to eight months to implement the second phase of a five-phase plan, after troops completed in early January the phase concerning the area south of the Litani. The conference in support of the Lebanese Army is set for March 5 in Paris, with a preparatory meeting taking place on Tuesday in Cairo.
During the Cairo meeting, Haykal is expected to present the army’s needs under a plan developed in coordination with the Quintet countries. During a recent visit to Washington, he secured continued U.S. support for the Lebanese Army program, which is expected to replace the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in southern Lebanon by late 2026.
Salam also reiterated his call for Hezbollah to stay out of any potential confrontation between the United States and Iran as the two countries engage in sensitive negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear program.
“The Gaza adventure cost Lebanon dearly, and we hope not to be dragged into a new adventure,” he said.
Hezbollah opened a "support front" in solidarity with Gaza on Oct. 8, 2023. A subsequent escalation with Israel turned the conflict into a nationwide war, as Israeli attacks killed 4,000 people before the November 2024 cease-fire, and continue daily despite it. Reconstruction costs are estimated in the billions of dollars. During the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June 2025, Hezbollah did not intervene.
