BY-ELECTION FIGURES ESTABLISH AOUN AS CHRISTIAN LEADER
Hussein Noureddine
Al-Manar Special
08/08/2007
After relative political and electoral calm returned to the Metn
region in the wake of Sunday’s stormy by-election, figures revealed an
increase in the Christian popularity of Michel Aoun’s Free Patriotic
Movement, whose candidate Kamil Khoury defeated former President Amine
Gemayel and secured a seat in parliament. Khouri gained 79 percent of
the Armenian Christians votes, whereas only 20 percent of them voted
for Gemayel. This had prompted the former president to lash out at the
Armenian community and saw other leaders from the so called February
14 bloc demand Lebanese Armenians to "let the Lebanese decide their
own fate," according to MP Walid Jumblatt. In the meantime, Gemayel,
a Maronite Christian, received 56 percent of Maronite votes; that is
around 15 thousand Maronites whereas Khouri received 43 percent of
their votes; that is some 12 thousand Maronites. Worth mentioning
that dozens of ballots naming Khouri had been cancelled because
they were orange ballots, something that the electoral law does
not sanction. There were also some 600 electoral IDs for pro-Free
Patriotic Movement voters which were not handed over to their owners
by the Ministry of the Interior.
Moving to Orthodox Christians, they gave Khoury more than 1200 votes
over Gemayel who only received 42 percent of their votes. Khoury also
gained 52 percent of Catholic Christians’ votes, while Gemayel gained
some 42 percent of their votes.
Just until before by-elections, the Metn region was considered a
stronghold for pro-February 14 supporters, however Sunday’s referendum
as both sides like to call it, proved this theory wrong.
According to analysts, should a comprehensive referendum be conducted
in the remainder of Christian areas, General Michel Aoun would
undoubtedly rise as the most popular Christian leader in Lebanon. The
result of by-elections in Metn is likely to influence presidential
election for which General Aoun is a candidate.
It goes without saying that pro-government members of parliament
representing Christians in North Lebanon, Baabda and Aley had won
their seats in the 2005 legislative elections with the votes of
non-Christians.