The Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Democratic Senator Bob Menendez, urged the Lebanese government to "ensure that the upcoming elections are held on time, transparently, representatively, and fairly." Menendez stated in a statement that the parliamentary elections in Lebanon are "crucial," as "Lebanese citizens both domestically and around the world will cast their votes amid an unprecedented economic crisis that has driven many into poverty and forced others to leave the country in search of a better future." He affirmed his support for all "Lebanese voters who are still committed to a prosperous democratic future for their country, in a future where the rule of law allows the government to provide essential services to its citizens and hold accountable those involved in the corruption that has led to all these economic crises and the deadly explosion in the Port of Beirut on August 4, 2020."
Lebanese citizens began casting their votes abroad on Friday for the parliamentary elections, in a significant event that analysts do not expect to change the overall political landscape amid an unprecedented economic collapse, according to a report by Agence France-Presse. The parliamentary elections in Lebanon are the first after a large popular uprising that swept the country in the fall of 2019, demanding the resignation of the political class and holding it responsible for the financial and economic deterioration and the corruption that has seeped into state institutions. The agency’s report indicates that many see the elections as an opportunity to challenge the authority, even though they are aware that the chances of opposition and independent candidates making political change are slim in a country built on sectarian quotas and burdened by accumulated crises.
