Syrian critics see election as a sham

A spotlight shone through the early evening Damascus sky, heralding the campaign launch of Mohammed Nabil al-Nouri, independent parliamentary candidate – and loyal supporter of Bashar al-Assad, the president. (more…)

Gemayel smells a rat, urges expats not to register to vote

Phalange party bloc MP Sami Gemayel urged on Thursday the Lebanese expatriates not to register their names at Lebanese embassies in order to participate in the upcoming 2013 parliamentary elections “because we fear that there might be a game behind [the proposed logistics for expatriate voting].” (more…)

Gemayel calls for a neutral cabinet to oversee 2013 elections

Former Lebanese president and current Phalange Party leader Amin Gemayel said on Wednesday that a “uneutral government” was a necessity for managing the electoral process during the 2013 parliamentary elections, National News Agency reported. (more…)

Future, PSP will be allies in 2013 polls, official

Future Movement official former MP Moustafa Allouch said on Wednesday that his party will form an alliance with Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt for the 2013 parliamentary elections.

“The heart of Walid Jumblatt and most of his supporters have never left the core of the March 14 [coalition]. (more…)

March 14 wants 2013 polls overseen by technocrats

Lebanon’s Former Prime Minister and current Future bloc leader Fouad Siniora and the Lebanese Forces called Sunday for the formation of a neutral cabinet of technocrats to supervise the 2013 parliamentary elections. (more…)

Hollande, Sarkozy set to advance to French runoff

Socialist Francois Hollande and conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy are heading for a runoff in the race for France’s presidency, according to partial official results after a first round of voting Sunday.
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French elections: Economy may sink Sarkozy

French voters headed to the polls on Sunday in round one of a presidential ballot, with economic despair on course to make Nicolas Sarkozy the first president to lose a fight for re-election in more than 30 years.

In a contest driven as much by a dislike of Sarkozy’s showy style and his failure to bring down unemployment as (more…)

France goes to the polls

France is voting in the first round of a presidential election expected to show a groundswell of support for the far left and extreme right.

Nicolas Sarkozy, seeking a second five-year term in the Elysée palace, spent the final days of a bitter campaign insisting he could overhaul (more…)

Biggest rally in months against military’s rule in Egypt

Tens of thousands of protesters packed Cairo’s downtown Tahrir Square on Friday in the biggest demonstration in months against the ruling military, aimed at stepping up pressure on the generals to hand over power to civilians and bar ex-regime members from running in upcoming presidential elections. (more…)

Obama, Romney in dead heat, poll finds

Mitt Romney has closed the gap with President Obama among registered voters, a CBS News/New York Times poll released Wednesday found, putting the former Massachusetts governor in a dead heat (more…)