Libya’s High Council of State Rejects UN-Backed Electoral Arrangement

Yesterday 20:45

Libya’s political transition has encountered another institutional obstacle after the country’s High Council of State rejected a UN-backed arrangement aimed at reshaping the electoral framework and preparing the ground for presidential and parliamentary elections.

The decision, taken on Monday, followed an examination of the outcome of a limited dialogue between representatives of Libya’s two rival political camps. The initiative, facilitated by the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), focused on several institutional questions considered essential to restarting the country’s stalled electoral process.

According to a statement issued by the High Council of State, 72 of the 92 members present voted against the conclusions reached by the so-called “Smaller Convening” format. The members cited the absence of a sufficiently broad national consensus, as well as what they described as a lack of an agreed constitutional and legal foundation.

Dispute over the electoral roadmap

The disagreement comes at a sensitive stage for Libya, where rival institutions and competing political authorities have repeatedly struggled to agree on the rules required for nationwide elections.

The arrangement reached on August 30 under UN auspices proposed changes to the composition of the board of Libya’s High National Elections Commission. It also envisaged the appointment of a new chairman and deputy chairman, alongside six additional members divided equally between the House of Representatives and the High Council of State.

The proposed institutional changes were intended to help establish conditions for presidential and legislative elections within a period of no more than 24 months.

For opponents within the High Council of State, however, the initiative raises questions about the legitimacy of modifying key electoral institutions without first securing a wider political and constitutional agreement.

Support for the UN political roadmap remains

Despite rejecting the conclusions of the restricted dialogue, the High Council of State did not distance itself from the broader UN-led political process.

The institution reaffirmed its support for the roadmap launched by UNSMIL on August 21, 2025, presenting it as a framework that should be anchored in a clearly defined political process and recognized constitutional foundations.

That distinction could prove significant in the next phase of negotiations. The council's position suggests that its objection is focused less on international mediation itself than on the legal and political basis of the specific agreement reached through the smaller dialogue format.

Electoral institutions at the center of Libya’s political deadlock

The High National Elections Commission remains a key component of any future electoral process. Any attempt to reorganize its leadership is therefore closely linked to wider disputes over the legitimacy and sequencing of elections.

The latest rejection illustrates the difficulty facing international mediators as they seek to bridge differences between Libya’s divided institutions. While electoral preparations require institutional decisions, those same decisions can become politically contentious when the parties disagree over the constitutional framework underpinning them.

The High Council of State was established under the Libyan Political Agreement signed in Skhirat, Morocco, on December 17, 2015. Its institutional role includes providing binding opinions to the Government of National Unity on draft legislation before it is submitted to the House of Representatives, as well as offering consultative opinions on international agreements.

The council also shares responsibilities with the House of Representatives in proposing legislation related to referendums and general elections.

With the latest vote, the dispute over Libya’s electoral architecture is once again exposed as a broader question of institutional legitimacy. The challenge for the UN mission will now be to preserve momentum toward elections while addressing the constitutional and political objections raised by one of the country's principal state institutions.