Editing Politics of Lebanon (section)

==Political parties and elections==
{{elect|List of political parties in Lebanon|Elections in Lebanon}}
Lebanon [[List of political parties in Lebanon|has numerous political parties]], but they play a much less significant role in Lebanese politics than they do in most parliamentary democracies. Many of the "parties" are simply lists of candidates endorsed by a prominent national or local figure. Loose coalitions, usually organized locally, are formed for electoral purposes by negotiation among clan leaders and candidates representing various religious communities. Such coalitions usually exist only for the election, and rarely form a cohesive block in the [[Parliament of Lebanon|Parliament]] after the election. No single party has ever won more than 12.5 percent of the seats in the Parliament. No coalition of parties has won more than 35 percent.

Especially outside of the major cities, elections tend to focus more on local than national issues. It is not unusual for a party to join an electoral ticket in one constituency while aligned with a rival party – even an ideologically opposite party – in another constituency.

It is not uncommon for election times to be accompanied by outbreaks of violence, especially in polling areas where there are people of conflicting political and religious backgrounds. Sectarianism is so ingrained into Lebanese politics and society that citizens supporting their political parties will kill or be killed defending them.