Project Overview

UNDP is implementing an electoral and parliamentary support project for the period 2024–2027, following an official request from the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities (MoIM). The project supports the organization of parliamentary and municipal elections, strengthens electoral and parliamentary processes, and promotes needed legal and procedural reforms. It builds on extensive assessments and lessons learned from previous electoral cycles. The project also focuses on political participation, and gender equality, in line with SDG 5 (Gender Equality) and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions), to contribute to more transparent and inclusive democratic institutions.

Through a multi-component approach, the project has the intended outcomes of providing technical assistance and support in the following key electoral areas: 

1. Support to the electoral management and administration, 
2. Support to the campaign supervision and electoral monitoring, 
3. Enhanced electoral dispute resolution process, 
4. Promoting the adoption of key electoral reforms leading to enhanced participation, inclusion, and transparency, and 
5. Institutional support to the parliament.
    

Project Objective

• Provide technical and operational support to the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities (MoIM), the Supervisory Commission for Elections (SCE), and the Constitutional Council (CC) to ensure timely, transparent and inclusive elections.
• Inclusive Participation: Increase the participation and representation of women, youth, and persons with disabilities (PWDs) as voters, candidates, and decision-makers.
• Support the adoption of legal electoral reforms based on lessons learned and international standards.
• Support the conduct of nationwide civic education and voter awareness campaigns to provide credible sources of information, combat misinformation, and encourage informed participation.
• Strengthen the Parliament’s legislative, oversight, and representative functions through technical assistance, institutional development, and automation.

Achievements & Key Figures

2026 Support to the Parliamentary Elections

UNDP LEAPS is providing comprehensive technical assistance across the electoral cycle to support credible, inclusive, and transparent parliamentary elections in Lebanon. This includes:

• Engaging Out-of-Country Voters: Targeted social media outreach to support overseas voter registration.
• Voter Education Campaign: Nationwide awareness covering data verification, candidate/list registration, voting information, and encouragement.
• Digital Access to Information: Launch of a revamped official elections website for accessible, accurate, and timely election information.
• Real-Time Support Services: Activation of a national elections’ hotline serving voters, candidates, media, and observers.
• Modernized Candidate Registration: Operational digital registration system to streamline processes and improve transparency.
• Enhanced Oversight Tools: Technical support to the Supervisory Commission for Elections, including an e-monitoring system to track campaign activities, in addition to refurbishment of their new premises.
• Institutional Coordination: Strengthened collaboration among electoral management bodies and civil society actors.
• Electoral Materials Procurement: Supply of essential materials to support efficient and credible election administration.

Furthermore, UNDP LEAPS is working towards enhancing the working conditions of parliamentary committees and the Parliament’s administration, and strengthening institutional functionality and day-to-day operations. 
It’s worth noting that additional technical support is planned in the next phases of implementation.

2025 Support to Municipal & Mukhtar Elections

In 2025, UNDP LEAPS supported the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities and governorates in the successful conduct of municipal and mukhtar elections, helping deliver inclusive, transparent, and credible polls nationwide despite challenging conditions:

• Operational Preparedness: National delivery of essential electoral materials for smooth election-day operations.
• Training & Capacity Building: Standardized training tools for over 28,000 polling officials, enhancing consistency and integrity.
• Digital Transformation: Automated candidate registration system used by nearly 30,000 candidates, improving efficiency and transparency.
• Voter Education: Awareness campaigns reached around 4 million citizens, with focused engagement of women and persons with disabilities.
• Access to Information and Transparency: National hotline responded to 18,000 inquiries; and 3,000 media and observer accreditations reinforced accountability.
• Advancing Women’s Representation: Support to gender equality initiatives, including advocacy for 30% women on electoral lists.
• Learning & Reform: Lessons-learned exercises and stakeholder coordination contributed to actionable recommendations for future electoral improvements.

Sustained Support Across Electoral Cycles

UNDP has provided technical and operational assistance across multiple electoral cycles, including support to the 2016 and 2025 municipal and mukhtar elections, and the 2018 and 2022 parliamentary elections, helping safeguard periodic, transparent, and inclusive electoral processes over nearly a decade, despite political, economic, and security challenges.

GESI Component (Gender Equality and Social Inclusion)

The project is designated with a GEN3 gender marker, indicating that gender equality is a principal objective. LEAP III integrates gender-sensitive approaches across all outputs, including:

• Advocating for a gender quota in the electoral law.
• Providing specialized training and networking for female candidates and parliamentarians.
• Ensuring polling stations are accessible to persons with disabilities (PWDs).
• Producing gender-disaggregated data on voter turnout and political representation to inform future policy interventions.