Lebanese Head to the Polls in First Round of Municipal Elections

BEIRUT (Sputnik) — The first round of municipal elections kicked off on Sunday in Lebanon, a Sputnik correspondent reported.

Residents are choosing lawmakers to be represented in local governments of the Bekaa Valley and Baalbek-Hermel provinces in eastern Lebanon as well as in Beirut. Supporters of former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri and independent civil society activists are struggling for the victory. The elections will last until May 29 in five other provinces of Lebanon.

"Municipal elections are a privilege of the people, this is the essence of our democracy. We hope that this will also affect the rest; first and foremost, the presidential election," Prime Minister Tammam Salam said, after casting his vote in Beirut.

Police and the army tightened security for the duration of the elections. The Interior Ministry ordered to close night clubs and restaurants, forbidding the use of motorcycles until completion of the election process.

Lebanon has existed without a president since the term of the last Lebanese president, Michel Suleiman, expired in May 2014.

Previous municipal elections were held in Lebanon in 2010.