The Alliance of National Forces (ANF) led by Mahmoud Jibril, who headed the Transitional National Council (CNT) during the Libyan revolt, tops the list following the recent legislative elections in Libya, according to partial results announced Monday night by the election commission.
After counting 75% of the ballots, it was indicated that the ANF led the Islamist camp, whose Justice and Construction Party (JCP) was formed by the Muslim Brotherhoods. The Homeland Union, headed by a longtime opponent of Muammar Qaddafi regime, leads in Misrata, the third largest city in the country.
One day after the election , the Liberal coalition has already said it was ahead in most constituencies. However, the final results will be declared later this week as counting could last another four or five days, indicated the electoral commission, which did not set a date for the official announcement of the winner.
These results relate to the political parties competing for 80 seats reserved for party lists in the next national assembly, which has a total of 200 members. The remaining 120 seats are reserved for independent candidates, elected by majority vote. The new elected body will be mandated to appoint the next government and pave the way for drafting a new constitution.
Despite some violence and sabotage, international observers have described the first free elections in the country's history as successful. "It is remarkable that virtually all Libyans have voted without fear or intimidation," said Monday one of the observers deployed by the European Union, Alexander Graf Lambsdorff.
"The Electoral Commission has shown its ability and determination to quickly address safety issues and was able to guarantee the operation of polling centers in affected areas", said another European observer in a statement.
For his part, the likely winner Mahmoud Djibril called on other political parties to national unity and expressed the wish to form a grand coalition government bringing together some 150 political parties in the country, "under one umbrella."
"This is an honest and sincere appeal to all political parties existing in Libya today. In the election, there was no winner or loser [...] The only winner is Libya," stated Mahmoud Djibril.
