Elections in Libya

In 1969 Colonel Gaddafi took control of Libya, and for the next 41 years there were no elections. This has finally changed as yesterday Libyans took to the polls for the first time since overthrowing Gaddafi last year. Over 100 political parties are vying for seats in the 200 strong parliament, the parliament will then begin to draft a constitution and select a leader. The constitution will then be voted on in a referendum.

So far, everything seems to be going rather smoothly, even in Gaddafi loyalist areas voter turnout has been remarkably high. The election has also been marked with relatively low violence, particularly in the East around Tripoli. In Benghazi on the other hand there have been a few attacks on polling stations and skirmishes with the police, but nothing major.

The National Transitional Council has promised to hand over power as soon as a government is formed, which will take a few weeks as vote counting will take quite a long time and one party is unlikely to receive a majority. Yet if a stable government is formed there will be many challenges for it, central government is currently very week and armed militia are the de-facto government in rural areas.

Despite the challenges ahead, things are looking bright for Libya. The vast oil wealth will be able to prop up the civilian government against terrorists and will allow Libya to be rebuilt. Let’s hope the revolution will turn into a shining success, like those in Eastern Europe after the end of the Cold War.