Geagea says Azour can get more than 65 votes

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea has confirmed that an agreement has been reached between the opposition and the Free Patriotic Movement on Jihad Azour’s presidential nomination, noting that “the negotiations are moving forward.”

“He is a consensual, neutral candidate and not a confrontation candidate against Hezbollah,” Geagea added, in an interview with al-Akhbar newspaper.

Noting that the Progressive Socialist Party is also “supposed to vote for him,” Geagea noted that Speaker Nabih Berri will only call for an electoral session when 65 votes are secured for Suleiman Franjieh.

“Without that we will spend 300 years without an electoral session,” Geagea added.

Asked whether the opposition is confident that FPM chief Jebran Bassil will manage to compel all of his bloc’s members to vote for Azour, the LF leader said a recent vote count gave Azour more than 65 votes.

“I will not delve into electoral details and reveal the identities of the MPs who will support him, but according to this count, Speaker Berri will not call for a session,” Geagea went on to say.

And noting that Azour is “carrying on with his nomination and does not consider himself to be in a confrontation with anyone,” Geagea lamented that “according to the behavior of the Axis of Defiance, it seems that we are headed for a lengthy vacuum.”