Libya’s rival political factions have agreed on a 24-month road map for presidential and parliamentary elections, marking a potentially significant step towards ending more than a decade of political division.
The agreement, reached through UN-backed negotiations in Tripoli, calls for reforms to the electoral framework and the restructuring of the country’s High National Electoral Commission. The plan also envisages presidential and parliamentary elections being held simultaneously under a single executive authority.
However, analysts warn that implementation remains highly uncertain. The agreement does not provide a clear mechanism for creating the unified executive authority required before elections can take place. Libya’s rival institutions in the west and east have repeatedly disagreed over political legitimacy, electoral laws and control of state institutions.
The country’s divided judiciary and unresolved constitutional questions could also trigger legal challenges. Previous attempts to organise elections, including the planned December 2021 presidential vote, collapsed amid disputes over electoral rules and candidate eligibility
The United States has welcomed the agreement as an encouraging development, while separately pushing for the unification of Libya’s eastern and western institutions.
The key question now is whether Libya’s political leaders will turn another agreement into concrete action — or repeat the cycle of postponed elections and continued division.
