Beirut II (1960)

The constituency was established as part of the 1960 Election Law.{{cite book|author1=Michael C. Hudson|author2=Leonard Binder|author3=Harvard University. Center for International Affairs|title=The precarious republic: political modernization in Lebanon|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rbstAQAAIAAJ|date=May 1985|publisher=Westview Press|isbn=978-0-8133-0105-1|page=250}} In the 1957 parliamentary election Beirut had been divided into two constituencies, and Dar El Mreisse, Zuqaq al-Blat and Bachoura had been part of the same constituency as Minet el Hosn, Port, Ras Beirut and Medawar.Messerlian, Zaven. Armenian Participation in the Lebanese Legislative Elections 1934-2009. Beirut: Haigazian University Press, 2014. p. 135 The issue of the delimitations of the Beirut constituencies had been contested, but an agreement between Christian and Muslim leaders was reached on February 23, 1960, by which there was agreement that Beirut II would be assigned two Muslim seats and one Maronite seat. The Election Law was passed in April 1960, with three seats for Beirut II (1 Sunni, 1 Shia, 1 Minorities).{{cite book|author=Yitzhak Oron, Ed.|title=Middle East Record Volume 1, 1960|date=1960 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0LooyExir7EC&pg=PA349|publisher=The Moshe Dayan Center|pages=349–351|id=GGKEY:3KXGTYPACX2}}

Beirut II was described as a sort of 'buffer zone' between the Muslim West Beirut and the Christian East Beirut.{{cite book|title=The Middle East Journal|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zIkSAAAAIAAJ|volume=14-15|year=1960|publisher=Middle East Institute.|page=376}} As of 1960 it was estimated that Beirut II had 18,740 Sunni Muslim voters, 10,153 Shia Muslims, 3,103 Maronites, 1,153 Greek Orthodox, 1,168 Greek Catholic, 3,736 Armenian Orthodox, 2,435 Minorities, 952 Armenian Catholics, 731 Protestants and 863 Druze.

In the 1960 parliamentary election a list radicals led by Adnan al-Hakim won the three seats, defeating notable leaders like Rashid Baydoun, Moussa de Freige and Takieddin el-Solh. The Najjadeh Party leader Al-Hakim won the Sunni seat, prominent liberal Muhsin Salim won the Shia seat and Farid Jubran (Latin Catholic, belonging to the Progressive Socialist Party) won the Minorities seat.{{cite book|author=Yitzhak Oron, Ed.|title=Middle East Record Volume 1, 1960|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_0LooyExir7EC|publisher=The Moshe Dayan Center|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_0LooyExir7EC/page/n381 353]–354|id=GGKEY:3KXGTYPACX2}}{{cite book|author1=Michael C. Hudson|author2=Leonard Binder|author3=Harvard University. Center for International Affairs|title=The precarious republic: political modernization in Lebanon|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rbstAQAAIAAJ|date=May 1985|publisher=Westview Press|isbn=978-0-8133-0105-1|page=158}} It was believed that Kataeb advances in Mount Lebanon had prompted the Muslim voters in Beirut II to back al-Hakim whilst most Christian voters had abstained. Moreover, al-Hakim was believed to have gotten support from leftwing Armenians sympathizing with the Huntchak Party.

In the 1964 parliamentary election Sami as-Solh emerged victorious, probably with the support from the Christian voters.{{cite book|author=Michael Johnson|title=Class & Client in Beirut: The Sunni Muslim Community and the Lebanese State, 1840-1985|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sl9tAAAAMAAJ|year=1986|publisher=Ithaca Press|isbn=978-0-86372-062-8|page=50}} As-Solh defeated al-Hakim with a margin of just 75 votes. Rashid Baydoun won the Shia seat.{{cite book|title=Who's who in Lebanon|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WZpCAAAAYAAJ|year=1968|publisher=Éditions Publitec|page=105}} Jubran retained the Minorities seat. In the Lebanese general election, 1968 in Beirut II a list of al-Hakim, Jubran and Abd al-Majid az-Zayn (Shia) won the three seats and defeated the candidatures of Sami and Takieddin as-Solh.Zuwiyya, Jalal. [https://books.google.com/books?id=NZo3AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA17 The Parliamentary Election of Lebanon 1968]. Leiden: Brill, 1972. pp. 13, 17–20

In the 1972 parliamentary election, the last to be held before the outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War, a list of Rashid as-Solh (allied with the Lebanese National Movement) and Jubran won a landslide in Beirut II.{{cite book|author=Raghīd Ṣulḥ|title=Lebanon and Arabism, 1936-1945|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=49z7AFqIE2IC&pg=PA331|year=2004|publisher=I.B.Tauris|isbn=978-1-86064-051-3|page=331}} Al-Hakim lost his seat. However, the Shia candidate on the al-Hakim list Mohammad Yousuf Baydoun was elected.{{cite book|title=Cairo Press Review|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t7lHAQAAIAAJ|date=16 April 1972|page=21}}

After the Civil War, a new set-up of constituencies was used ahead of the 1992 general election abolishing the 1960 Election Law constituencies.{{cite book|author=Imad Salamey|title=The Government and Politics of Lebanon|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SShmAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA112|date=15 October 2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-135-01133-8|pages=74–75, 112–113}}

{{reflist|30em}}{{Electoral districts of Lebanon}}

Category:Electoral districts of Lebanon

Beirut 02

Beirut 02

Beirut 02

Beirut 02