Libya election candidates to register from mid November

Chairman of the Libyan High National Election Commission (HNEC) Emad Al-Shadly Al-Sayah said Sunday that the commission will open registration for the presidential and parliamentary candidates in November.

During in a news conference held in the capital Tripoli, Al-Sayah announced that the registration process will start by mid-November when technical and logistical preparations are completed.

The elections are a major step forward in efforts to end the decade-old violence by forming a new political leadership with widespread legitimacy.

The chairman also announced a "proactive process" will be launched from Monday, which includes publishing a list of the names of people registered to vote, to ensure transparency and "allow the concerned to challenge the names contained in them."

Al-Sayah added that forms of the endorsement lists, stipulated by the electoral laws on the candidates for the presidential and parliamentary elections, will be published on the Commission's website on Sunday.

"The acceptance of candidacy for the presidential and parliamentary elections will be available upon completion of the necessary technical and logistical preparations for this stage," he added.

On Thursday, the Libyan Prime Minister, Abdel Hamid Dbeibah, and a number of foreign powers approved holding general elections on December 24, as stated in a U.N.-backed peace plan aimed at ending the turmoil and divisions that have plagued the country for years.

Although Libya's parliament passed a law on presidential elections on that date, it also passed a separate law providing for the organization of parliamentary elections at a later date.

Other political institutions in Libya rejected the parliament's proposals.

The first round of presidential elections is scheduled for December 24, with Al-Sayah announcing that a second round will be held at a later date, in addition to the parliamentary elections.