In Society: How Did Woman Vote? — The Bekaa Elections

* The 12th, 19th, and 26th of last July were memorable days in the history of Lebanon, for on them the Lebanese people were called to elect their representatives to the Lebanese Chamber under the new electoral law.

In view of the newness of this experience in the life of the Lebanese woman, there was much questioning about the stand woman would take toward this momentous experiment, and all manner of predictions were made for her.

The enthusiasm and eagerness of the Lebanese woman in the elections were not limited to her turning out at the polls and expressing her will in electing the representatives of her nation; they went beyond that, to the holding of women's rallies and mixed rallies in the various regions of the country, to awaken woman to her full duty and alert her to what is for her good and her welfare.

How did woman vote?

Despite the strict measures taken by the authorities so that the elections might proceed free of any outside influence, the new faces in the Chamber-to-be are very few, and most of the old elements regained their seats; as for the new elements which relied on scholarly and moral competence alone, they did not meet with the expected support.

Among these new elements about whose practical stand in the elections people are asking is the Lebanese woman. The statistics have shown that the proportion of women who voted in this round differs from region to region, and that the turnout and response were wider

and more general where the proportion of educated women is higher—and vice versa...

The Bekaa Elections

Emily Fares Ibrahim was the only lady who stood her ground firmly and declared her resolve to fight the battle to the end. She held rallies at which a company of men and women of letters spoke in support of their candidate; but the Bekaa voters failed Mrs. Emily, and she obtained no more than 613 votes.

In any case, her stand was an honorable one for the cause of the Lebanese woman, and it was a splendid lesson in a boldness and steadfastness that had not been known of woman before.