Middle East Politics.Net » elections http://middleeastpolitics.net Facts, News, Trends, Analysis Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:56:32 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Lebanon’s Parliamentary Elections As Expected http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/06/lebanons-parliamentary-elections-as-expected/ http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/06/lebanons-parliamentary-elections-as-expected/#comments Sun, 07 Dec 2008 05:06:26 +0000 vvahedi http://middleeastpolitics.net/?p=3778 Lebanon will conduct its parliamentary elections as scheduled, despite rumors that they are to be postponed. The elections will be held in the Spring and concerns that they could be canceled are unjustified, note senior government officials. The elections are typically held between April 20th and June 29th.

The elections were to be postponed following the concerns over the deep political rifts between political parties. Also, there was a possibility of a conflict with the court date for the March trial concerning former PM Rafik Al-Hariri’s assassination.

Venus Vahedi

]]> http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/06/lebanons-parliamentary-elections-as-expected/feed/ 0 Lebanese Elections to Proceed as Planned http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/05/lebanese-elections-to-proceed-as-planned/ http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/05/lebanese-elections-to-proceed-as-planned/#comments Fri, 05 Dec 2008 22:54:07 +0000 sdemetri http://middleeastpolitics.net/?p=3715 Lebanese officials have dismissed concerns that the parliamentary elections scheduled for next spring may be canceled. Calling such claims unfounded, officials insist that, as planned, elections will take place between April 20 and June 29, 2009. Skeptics have cited the deep political fragmentation among Lebanon’s political forces, and have voiced particular concern that the the investigation of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri’s assassination, set for March 2009, will stir up tension at the time of the elections. There is concern among many that the resurgence of tensions over the 2005 incident will spill over and spark political, and violent, conflict during the elections.

Stefanie Demetriades

]]> http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/05/lebanese-elections-to-proceed-as-planned/feed/ 0 Maronite Bishops Encourage Unity Before Elections http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/03/maronite-bishop-encourages-unity-before-elections/ http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/03/maronite-bishop-encourages-unity-before-elections/#comments Thu, 04 Dec 2008 01:15:13 +0000 Samantha Foley http://middleeastpolitics.net/?p=3422 Maronite bishops warned that growing divisions between Lebanese political groups would only lead to “chaos” in the upcoming parliamentary elections. Some political voices have made statements that the current political situation in Lebanon is not conducive to elections. The bishops came out criticizing these statements saying that it would create chaos and be more costly to try to obstruct these elections. The bishops added that these differing opinions posed a problem for daily life in Lebanon. Political leaders must unite at this critical time. If these various political figures and groups can put aside their differences for the sake of the country, then Lebanon has a chance at successful elections. It is now that all political groups must consider the national interests of Lebanon. If these divisions continue and there is a volatile political situation in Lebanon, this will only further the destruction of the nation.

Samantha Foley

]]> http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/12/03/maronite-bishop-encourages-unity-before-elections/feed/ 0 Tensions Rise in Iranian Parliament as Official Faces Confidence Vote http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/11/04/tensions-rise-in-iranian-parliament-as-iranian-official-faces-confidence-cote/ http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/11/04/tensions-rise-in-iranian-parliament-as-iranian-official-faces-confidence-cote/#comments Tue, 04 Nov 2008 15:19:21 +0000 kcahoon http://middleeastpolitics.net/?p=1985

A top Iranian minister appointed by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad earlier this year is facing a motion of no confidence today on charges that he tried to bribe members of Parliament not to impeach him. The attempt to impeach Interior Minister Ali Kordan came after an investigation led to the discovery that Kordan’s Ph.D. from Oxford University was fake, as well as the Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees he claimed to have obtained from an Iranian university. The scandal took a turning point last Wednesday when $5,000 dollar checks were distributed to parliamentary ministers, supposedly as donations for the legislator’s local mosques. The legislators did however sign two receipts for these donations, one of which was a letter to the speaker of Parliament asking for the impeachment to be dropped. President Ahmadinejad, however, does not seem bothered by the situation, asking “who cares even if Mr. Kordan’s degree is fake?” It has been suggested by analysts that Ahmadinejad has not been supportive of the impeachment due to the possibility that it could hurt him in the upcoming presidential elections in June of 2009, though one Parliament member has written a letter suggesting that impeaching Kordan in fact could have in fact won him millions of votes. It has also been suggested that Ahmadinejad’s nomination and unwavering support of Kordan’s position is due to Kordan’s agreement with Ahmadinejad’s policies, whereas the previous interior minister was dismissed because of his differences with the president.

Kayla Cahoon

]]> http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/11/04/tensions-rise-in-iranian-parliament-as-iranian-official-faces-confidence-cote/feed/ 0 One Step at a Time for Iraqi Security Forces http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/10/28/one-step-at-a-time-for-iraqi-security-forces/ http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/10/28/one-step-at-a-time-for-iraqi-security-forces/#comments Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:55:57 +0000 hackenda http://middleeastpolitics.net/?p=1778 Last Thursday, the US military handed over control of even more territory to Iraqi forces. Babil, a once violent area south of Baghdad, is the 12th province of a total of 18 to be transferred back to Iraqi control. According to US military commanders, the frequency of attacks in the province has declined by over 80% in the past year, which is a huge improvement.

Although the Iraqi National Security Adviser claims that this progress proves the self-sufficiency of Iraqi forces, US officials insist that they are not totally ready and able to be left to operate on their own. The future is looking bright, though, as violence is declining in other provinces too (namely the western Anbar province, which if provincial elections run smoothly in the area, could also be returned to Iraqi forces very soon).

Haley Hackendale

]]> http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/10/28/one-step-at-a-time-for-iraqi-security-forces/feed/ 0 Religious Minorities Speak Out Against Iraqi Election Legislation http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/09/28/religious-minorities-speak-out-against-iraqi-election-legislation/ http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/09/28/religious-minorities-speak-out-against-iraqi-election-legislation/#comments Mon, 29 Sep 2008 00:33:51 +0000 hackenda http://middleeastpolitics.net/?p=1001 Although many citizens and policymakers in Iraq were displeased that the most recently passed election law failed to address critical issues like the city of Kirkuk, a whole new wave of opposition to the law has risen from people who are outraged and opposed to it entirely.

When the law was passed, legislators struck from it Article 50, which guaranteed political representation for Christians and members of other minority sects in Iraq. Constituents from these minority groups showed their displeasure by speaking out publicly and staging demonstrations this weekend in northern Iraq, where many of them reside.

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has taken these demands into consideration and has urged Parliament and other government officials to amend this law in favor of the Christians and the other minorities who wish to remain active participants in the political sphere. The bill still has to be approved by President Talabani and his vice presidents, so there is definitely time for revisions if Parliament is willing to comply.

Haley Hackendale

]]> http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/09/28/religious-minorities-speak-out-against-iraqi-election-legislation/feed/ 0 Iraqi Parliament Continues to Avoid Kirkuk Dispute http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/09/25/iraqi-parliament-continues-to-avoid-kirkuk-dispute/ http://middleeastpolitics.net/2008/09/25/iraqi-parliament-continues-to-avoid-kirkuk-dispute/#comments Fri, 26 Sep 2008 05:28:31 +0000 hackenda http://middleeastpolitics.net/?p=938 Two weeks ago, it was uncertain whether the Iraqi Parliament would pass a crucial law addressing some serious flaws with the nation’s election process. According to the Los Angeles Times, the political stalemate has begun to ease and the law was passed yesterday.

This new legislation will result in more representation for Sunni Arabs, who were formerly underrepresented after boycotting elections in 2005. It also assures that women will be guaranteed a foothold in the political arena, political use of religious symbols will be banned, and an open slate in which voters elect individuals, not parties, will be instituted.

The reason this law had taken so long to pass was a dispute in Parliament over the city of Kirkuk, which the Kurds wish to incorporate into a semi-autonomous region. This issue was bypassed and the legislation mandated that a solution to this problem be addressed in the near future.

Although many Iraqi citizens hoped for more radical improvements, no one can argue with the fact that these reforms are steering Iraqi politics in a better direction. The US, for one, is looking forward to the elections and believes they will amend the political power imbalance that has led to so much sectarian violence.

Haley Hackendale

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