The people of Egypt have voted in the first round of parliamentary elections which has widely been described as an election that will tighten the incumbent’s grip on power.
Voting commenced on Saturday, the 24th of October and closed at 9 pm the following day. This first stage of voting took place in 14 of Egypt’s 27 provinces, including Giza and the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria. Egyptian expatriates abroad had voted earlier. About 33.5 million voters are eligible to participate in this stage.
More than 4000 candidates are competing for a total of 568 seats out of 596 in the Lower Chamber of the House of Representatives. The other 50% of seats in the House of Representatives are reserved for over 1,100 candidates who will be appointed by President El-Sissi.
What’s Next for Egypt?
The second round of voting will commence on November 7 in the country’s 13 other provinces, including the capital, Cairo, and the Sinai Peninsula but final results can only be expected by mid-December.
Issues to Consider
- The government restored the upper chamber to the country’s constitution following a referendum last year that sought to extend the president’s powers and term limits.
- Crackdown on dissent is very prominent in Egypt. In 2019, eight people were arrested including former lawmaker and Social Democratic party member Zyad el-Elaimy after they met with political parties and opposition lawmakers to prepare towards running in the 2020 parliamentary elections
Bottomline
It remains business as usual for Egypt no matter what the outcome of the election is, as is evident from the 50% quota reserved for deputies who will be chosen by the President himself.
“The election’s outcome is highly unlikely to produce a parliament that can form its own legislative agenda or hold the government accountable,” Ahmed Abd Rabou, a visiting assistant professor at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies, University of Denver speaking to the Associated Press.
