Saad al-Hariri, 35, the son of Lebanon's assassinated former premier, looks poised to sweep the board in Beirut tomorrow.

Saad is set to deliver a virtually uncontested victory for the election list of the son of slain ex-Premier Rafik Hariri. In pre-election horse-trading, Saad Hariri's Future bloc has already won almost half of the capital's seats, where nine of his candidates are unopposed, and appears likely to take the remaining 10 seats through the ballot box.

The Future bloc is expected to command a majority in the 128-seat parliament. Saad is widely believed to have an open invitation for the premiership should he want it.

Meanwhile the feud continues between Aoun and the opposition. Jumblatt accused Aoun of weakening the opposition through aggressive tactics: "I wish the opposition didn't have to fight side-battles, but some factions did not want it to stay united and wanted to take over everything."

Aoun failed to reach an electoral alliance with the rest of the opposition largely because he and Jumblatt were unable to reach agreement on seat allocation in Mount Lebanon.

Nothing should surprise us anymore in Lebanon. The latest reports predict an alliance between Aoun and staunch pro-Syrian, Deputy Speaker Michel Murr. Commenting on a deal with Aoun, Murr said: "Agreement between us on certain issues is there."

Aoun currently denies having formed a coalition with the Syrian Social Nationalist Party, who most recently were involved in a brawl with the Phalange Party in Dhour El Choueir earlier this week.

Political reform needs to be a high priority for the new parliament. Unfortunately, conventional wisdom tells us that consensus is no easy task.

Ya Libnan urges each and every capable person to show up and make your voice heard. We must not take the privilege to vote for granted. The times are changing, and this election is the turning point that will lead our country to a bright and prosperous future.

Sources: Ya Libnan, Wired News, BBC