Opposition forces are racing to win over clans and families in the Baalbek-Hermel governorate in eastern Lebanon, in an attempt to secure their votes in the electoral race, in the face of the list of Hezbollah and its allies.
The various forces opposed to Hezbollah are trying to take advantage of the party’s failure to nominate candidates from the region’s clans and families for the upcoming parliamentary elections, which are scheduled for May 2022.
The party has selected the same figures, who won in the previous elections, including MPs Hussein Hajj Hassan, Ihab Hamadeh, Ibrahim Moussawi and Ali Meqdad.
The list put forward by the Lebanese Forces party in Baalbek-Hermel is likely to obtain the majority of votes among the opposition groups, according to recent opinion polls.
The Shiite alliances in the list facing Hezbollah will play a key role in the results of the elections. However, these alliances are yet to crystallize, pending the announcement of the Shiite candidates.
The clans are distributed in the Baalbek-Hermel governorate in the regions and villages of Bouday, Makna, Al-Kenisa, Hermel, Al-Hadath, Sha’at and Riha, in addition to the border villages inhabited by Lebanese on the Syrian side of the northern Bekaa region.
Candidates representing the clans are looking forward to fighting their electoral battle in a unified electoral list. They blame the entire political class for the deteriorating economic situation and the prevailing corruption.
In this regard, clan sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the major clans and families “could win two seats if they unite and gather the Shiite voices that are not loyal to Hezbollah and its allies.”
“We consider ourselves the strongest, and we can offer our people what others have not been able to give,” said Dumr Meqdad, a social activist and a candidate for the parliamentary elections.
He added: “When the moment comes to make a decision, we will rally around each other alongside our clans.”
A list representing the region’s clans is preparing to engage in the electoral battle. It is composed of Medhat Zeaiter and Khaled Jaafar from the Lebanese border region, in addition to Dumr Meqdad, Youssef Shamas, a candidate from the Nassreddine family, as well as an independent activist from the town of Arsal.
On the other hand, the Lebanese Forces party is seeking to build a strong list to win over the clans, following its successful experience with Shiite candidate and former MP Yehya Shamas in the 2018 elections.
