On 27 December, the Libyan National Army (LNA) spokesperson Ahmed Mismari gave a long press release reaffirming the LNA’s commitment to elections on conditions that the High National Elections Commission (HNEC) is restructured to ensure that ‘Islamist’ elements do not infiltrate the process.. The following day Khalifa Haftar gave a TV interview reiterating the same message. He insisted that if elections don’t come to pass there is no way ‘but authorisation’ of the LNA to take power.
The High Council of State (HCS) is preparing to vote on a new referendum law in the coming days to enact it with the House of Representatives (HoR). On 24 December, a national effort called “#Referendum_First” was launched by a youth coalition of civil society organisations. These are part of efforts to ensure that a referendum is held on the constitution before elections take place.