It is still unclear who actually won the parliamentary elections in the Metn, former President Gemayel or the Aounist figurehead, Camille Khuri. No one had heard of Mr. Khuri before his nomination by Aoun, and the little he has said in public clearly indicates that he is indeed a pitiful candidate.
Who the victor is, is not as important as what the election told us about the state of the Christian leadership in Lebanon. Here are some findings:
- Aoun allied himself with the Devil, again, in an attempt to win this election. His allies include Michel Murr, Syria's foremost agent in Lebanon, and one of Lebanon's most corrupt politicians. Along with Murr, Aoun's allies include the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP), and the Tashnag (the leading Armenian political party who owes many favors to Murr)
- The Aounists are clearly losing popularity compared to the last parliamentary elections where they scored an overwhelming victory. This time, they had to resort to the "Naturalized" Syrians, bedouins and others. The "Naturalized" were given their Lebanese citizenship by Michel Murr when he was Minister of the Interior during Syria's occupation of Lebanon, and subsequently serve as a Murr's private electorate.
- In addition to the "Naturalized", Murr's Tashnag allies resorted to electoral fraud in several areas, including their fiefdom of Burj Hammoud. Such fraud included voting by the deceased and by electors who had long emigrated from Lebanon.
- The elections were conducted in a reasonably civilized way, away from the violence that many expected. This is a possible indicator that the Lebanese Christians are reaching a certain degree of maturity, but also a clear tribute to the Lebanese Army's capability to maintain order.
- Finally, and most importantly, these elections are a clear indication of the Christian Leadership void in Lebanon. Many who have voted for Aoun's candidate did so in protest against the weakness of the March 14 Christian leadership. It is interesting to note that Camille Khuri did not win the majority of vote in his hometown of Ain Alaq. The few people who really knew him voted against him.
