Voting Begins in the Second Phase of the Parliamentary Elections in Egypt

SadaNews - Voting for the second and final phase of the parliamentary elections (the lower house), began in Egypt on Monday morning in 13 governorates, following the annulment of results in 19 electoral districts from the first round.

Voting in the second phase started at 9 a.m. and will continue for two days across 13 out of 27 governorates, after the first round was held on November 10 and 11 in 14 governorates.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi cast his vote at a polling place in the Heliopolis district, east of Cairo, according to a statement from the Egyptian presidency.

Hazem Badawy, head of the National Election Authority, stated on Monday that "every vote in the ballot box affects the election outcomes."

Badawy emphasized that "the Authority is entrusted with the will of the Egyptian people, and will not allow any deputy to enter parliament unless they are elected correctly, reflecting the free will of the voters alone."

In the second phase, 1,316 candidates are competing for individual seats in 13 governorates, in addition to a unified list called "The National List for Egypt" (which includes 22 parties, mostly supporters of the Egyptian president), which is expected to win if it receives at least 5% of the votes according to the election regulations.

Results are set to be announced on December 2.

The governorates for the second phase are: Cairo, Qalyubia, Dakahlia, Gharbia, Menoufia, Kafr el-Sheikh, Sharkia, Damietta, Port Said, Ismailia, Suez, South Sinai, and North Sinai.

This round comes about a week after the head of the National Election Authority announced on November 18 the re-voting in 19 districts in half of the governorates where the first phase was conducted (14 governorates), due to "substantial violations," with the re-vote scheduled for December.

Badawy had mentioned that the Authority received 88 complaints regarding the first phase, and "will take the necessary action, even if it involves canceling the entire elections (for the entire phase) or in some districts," after Sisi called for the Authority to conduct a "thorough review" of the appeals and not hesitate in making the right decision even if it involves a total or partial cancellation of the first phase.

This is the first time since Sisi took power in 2014 that the election authority has decided to re-run the voting.

The number of voters is approximately 69 million out of about 108 million people.

The elections are conducted via direct voting, about three months after the Senate elections (the upper house) held last August.

The term of the House of Representatives is 5 years, and it is the legislative authority in Egypt, with 568 members; the constitution allows the president to appoint up to 5% of the members.

The Senate also has a term of 5 years, with 300 members, a third of whom are appointed by the president, while the other two-thirds are elected.