Story highlights Libyans voted July 7 for a General National Congress, a 200-seat assembly

The National Forces Alliance (NFA) wins 39 seats, the most of any group

Results are not final until after a 14-day appeals period

Libya is unique among nations that have held elections after Arab Spring uprisings

A political coalition widely regarded as the liberal option dominated Libya's historic parliamentary elections, results showed Tuesday.

The National Forces Alliance (NFA) won 39 seats, the most of any group. The coalition was trailed by the Justice and Construction party, a Muslim Brotherhood affiliate, which won 17 seats nationwide.

The results make Libya unique among countries that have held elections after Arab Spring uprisings. Voters in the North African nation chose a more liberal coalition to lead, while voters in Egypt and Tunisia both opted for Islamist parties.

The balance of power in the 200-seat General National Congress, however, remains up in the air.

Photos: Libya's Historic Election Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – Libyans light up a flare Saturday, July 7, in Benghazi as they celebrate the country's first free national election in decades after the ouster of dictator Moammar Gadhafi. Hide Caption 1 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – A man casts his vote at a Tripoli voting station on Saturday during Libya's General National Assembly election. Hide Caption 2 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – A Libyan woman casts her ballot at a Benghazi polling station. Hide Caption 3 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – A Libyan woman shows her inked finger after casting her ballot at a polling station in Benghazi during Libya's General National Assembly election on Saturday. Hide Caption 4 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – A woman prepares to cast her ballot at a Tripoli polling station. Hide Caption 5 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – Two Libyan election workers embrace after voting ends at a Tripoli polling station. Hide Caption 6 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – A Libyan man marks his ballot at a polling station in Tripoli. Hide Caption 7 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – Election workers count votes at a polling station during the election Saturday in Benghazi. Hide Caption 8 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – Libyan election workers start the ballot-counting process at a Tripoli polling station during Libya's General National Assembly. Hide Caption 9 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – After casting her ballot, a Libyan woman leaves a polling station in Tripoli. Hide Caption 10 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – Election officials begin sorting ballots at a polling station in Tajura following Libya's General National Assembly election. Hide Caption 11 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – A Libyan election official opens a ballot box at a Tajura polling station. Hide Caption 12 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – A window at this Benghazi polling station was broken by a protester demanding greater representation. Hide Caption 13 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – Libyan protesters wave pistols and peace signs. Hide Caption 14 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – A voter goes through a security checkpoint outside a polling station in the Abu Slim neighbourhood of Tripoli. Hide Caption 15 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – A man casts his ballot at an Abu Slim polling station near Tripoli. Hide Caption 16 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – Libyan protesters gather around burned ballot boxes and election materials outside a polling station in Benghazi. They are demanding greater representation during the voting process. Hide Caption 17 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – A Libyan protester throws torn ballots in the air outside a Benghazi polling station. Hide Caption 18 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – Libyan election workers check the identification card of a voter at a Tripoli polling station. Hide Caption 19 of 20 Photos: Libya's Historic Election Libya's historic election – Libyans celebrate in Tripoli's Martyrs' Square after voting for the Libyan General National Assembly. Hide Caption 20 of 20

Eighty seats are allocated to political entities, while 120 are reserved for individual candidates, which means the NFA's electoral victory does not automatically grant it a majority.

The results, though complete, are not yet final. Rivals have a 14-day period to file appeals, after which the results will be certified.

Libyans voted July 7 for the assembly that will appoint a transitional government and oversee the drafting of a constitution. About 3,500 candidates ran for the new parliament.

The assembly, which will take over from the National Transitional Council, will have 30 days from its first meeting to appoint a prime minister.

The NFA is led by Mahmoud Jibril, who was prime minister in the interim government that declared Libya a free nation after the 2011 revolt that toppled longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi in October. The mercurial Gadhafi dismantled many of the civic institutions common to democratic states during his 42 years in power, leaving Libya struggling to emerge from his shadow.

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While Gadhafi's death ended much of the violence, unrest continues in parts of the country, particularly the south and the west, and the government has not been able to completely contain the militias that helped overthrow the former leader.

In an interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour last week, Jibril said that it is vital for Islamists, liberals and secularists to "sit around one table" and form a new government.

"I think the biggest challenge right now is to convince our potential partners, especially the Islamist forces, that now it's time that we sit around one table and talk about one destiny that is in the interest of the Libyan people," he said from Tripoli. "It has nothing to do with who prevails in those elections or those who do not prevail."

Jibril said the absence of a civic structure in Libya means people of all political ideologies can be part of a new government.

"It's an opportunity that all parties, all political forces can have a new start where all of them can participate and take part in the reestablishment of the state," he said.

The NFA is a coalition of 58 political parties that campaigned as a "more liberal, progressive option" and focused heavily on economic issues, according to the Project on Middle East Democracy, a U.S.-based group.