The electoral battle in Qoubayyat went well beyond being a mere municipal competition and was instead portrayed as a juncture that would establish and consolidate the Maronite leadership in the town, especially since the Free Patriotic Movement and the Lebanese Forces engaged in fierce battle against the former MP Mikhael Daher and MP Hadi Houbeish, who allied with each other after decades of hostilities. However, an electorate of only 9,500 voters can by no means establish or put an end to Maronite leadership.
A relatively high percentage
2010 Elections
Two lists ran for the municipal council's 18 seats in 2010:
- The “Towards a Better Qoubayyat” List, headed by Abdou Abdou and backed by the Lebanese Forces, MP Hadi Houbeish, the Phalanges and part of the Abdou family. It won fifteen seats.
- The “Decision of Qoubayyat” List, headed by the former Director General of Education George Neemeh and endorsed by the Free Patriotic Movement, former MP Mikhael Daher, former candidate Joseph Mikhael and part of the Abdou family. It won three seats.
However, the elected council proved to be short-lived. In 2013, halfway through its term, the council, headed at the time by Abdou Abdou, dissolved following the resignation of over half of its members. However, Abdou Abdou and his list won again in the elections that followed, backed this time by the Free Patriotic Movement and MP Daher in the face of his former allies.
2016 Elections
The previous alliances changed drastically in 2016, reconciling between historical rivals. The lists running for municipal office were the following:
- The “Qoubayyat Decides” List, headed by the head of the municipality Abdou Abdou and backed by MP Hadi Houbeish and his former rival MP Mikhael Daher as well as the Phalanges Party.
- The “People of Qoubayyat” List, supported by the Lebanese Forces and the Free Patriotic Movement.
The race was highly competitive resulting in close electoral results. The first list won an average of 2,714 votes (49% of the total votes) securing 16 seats in the council against two seats for the second lists which amassed an average of 2,616 votes (47.2% of the total vote), meaning a win by only 98 votes.
