Q & A: Lebanon's elections

Following the elections, the government will officially resign but remain in office while consultations begin for the nomination of a new prime minister and the formation of a new government. The prime minister is selected by the president after he holds consultations with members of parliament and hears their views.

The nominated prime minister then selects his cabinet in consultation with the president. Traditionally, Lebanon's president is a Maronite Christian, the prime minister is a Sunni Muslim, and the parliamentary speaker is a Shiite.

Will the election be fair?

Probably more so than in the past. There is considerable international interest in these elections. In addition to domestic electoral watchdogs, the United Nations and the European Union have sent observers to monitor the proceedings. They gave a clean endorsement to the first round of voting in Beirut.

The most important aspect of these elections is that they will be free from Syrian interference, even though the law under which they are being held was engineered by the Syrians in the 2000 polls.

What are the top issues?

Although there is no shortage of important issues to discuss - the poor state of the economy, redefining relations with Syria, disarming Hizbullah, economic and political reform - few candidates actually present proposals for tackling them.

During the run-up to elections, the media have tended to dwell on the infighting between politicians rather than the debate over important issues. That has left many Lebanese feeling jaded by the whole process.

After the tumultuous developments of the past few months, many Lebanese are complaining that nothing has really changed, with many of the same politicians continuing to squabble among each other over the distribution of power and influence.

What are Hizbullah's prospects?

The southern round of voting took place Sunday. Of the five districts, this one is easiest to predict. Hizbullah, the Shiite militant organization, has teamed up with its traditional rival, the Amal Movement, to produce an unbeatable alliance that will capture the Shiite vote and almost certainly sweep all 23 available seats. The Lebanese media have nicknamed the alliance "the bulldozer."

About 650,000 people are eligible to vote in the southern round, although turnout is expected to hover between 30 and 40 percent. The low turnout is due to six candidates securing their seats unopposed, a partial Christian boycott in protest at the electoral law, and a certain amount of apathy at the foregone results.

Still, Hizbullah is fielding 14 candidates, hoping to raise the number of its lawmakers from nine.

Hizbullah is under stiff international pressure to disband its military wing. And its disarmament will be one of the most pressing political issues for the next government. Hizbullah's television station, Al Manar, has said that the elections will serve as a referendum on the party's political positions.

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