49. Do candidates have to report on their election campaign finances?

'To ensure compliance with the Elections Law, all candidates must open an account in an operating bank in Lebanon, and information about this account should submitted together with the candidate nomination documents (cf Articles 47(2) and 55(1)). All income and expenses must go through this account, and transactions exceeding 1 million LBP must be made with a cheque. Candidates need not make any financial reports to the SCEC before the elections, although a special committee formed by the Commission is mandated to request information and documents, and to inspect the candidate’s bank account. After the election, all candidates must submit a report to the SCEC including information about both the income and the expenditure related to the candidate during the reporting period. The reporting period is noted as the time from the candidate’s nomination (between 2 March and 7 April) and polling day. This period is referred to as the “electoral campaign” in the chapter on “Electoral Funding and Spending”, but it is important to note that the notion of “electoral campaign” is not further defined in the Elections Law. Among other things, there is no ban on campaigning before the start of this period, only a statement that no campaigning must take place on polling day itself (Article 51). However, the SCEC declared in a statement dated 25 March 2009 that posters and other materials produced and paid before the submission of the candidate’s nomination is included in the definition of campaign expenses. The submitted report should include detailed information about each transaction, and also supporting documents such as receipts and disbursement notes, along with an “exhaustive bank statement” (Article 61(2)).'

Source Ifes, The Political Finance Framework in Lebanon, 2009