At stake in this election:

• The office of President of Lebanon

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Emile LAHOUD *
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Fouad SINIORA
• Assembly: Lebanon has a unicameral National Assembly (Majlis al-Nuwab) with 128 seats.

* On September 3, 2004, the Chamber of Deputies introducted a one-time amendment to the Constitution to extend Emile LAHOUD's six-year term by three years.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by the National Assembly to serve a 6-year term.
• In the National Assembly (Majlis al-Nuwab) 128 members are elected by popular vote on the basis of sectarian proportion to serve 4-year terms.***

*** In the Chamber of Deputies, Deputies are elected by popular vote on the basis of a plural-majoritarian system with regional and confessional quotas to serve to serve four-year terms (50% of seats are reserved for Muslim Deputies and 50% of seats are reserved for Christian Deputies).

Main Candidates in the Presidential race:

• Nassib LAHOUD
  • Party: Democratic Renewal Movement (affiliated with pro-government bloc)
• Boutros HARB
  • Party: Independent (affiliated with pro-government bloc)
• General Michel AOUN
  • Party: Free Patriotic Movement
• General Michel SULEIMAN****
  • Party: None
• Riad SALAMEH
  • Party: None

**** Current Head of the Lebanese Armed Forces.

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 4,109,389 (2008)
• Registered Voters: 3,002,028 (May 2005)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 2,009,595 (2008)

·         Is Lebanon a signatory to CEDAW: No

·         Has Lebanon ratified CEDAW: Yes, accession (16 April 1997)

·         Gender Quota: No

·         Female candidates in this election: Yes

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 6 (following the 2005 elections)

·         Human Development Index Position: 67 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: High (2014)

Disability Data:

·         Is Lebanon a signatory to CRPD: Yes (14 June 2007)

·         Has Lebanon ratified CRPD: No

·         Population with a disability: 616,408 (est.)