Egypt Parliamentary Elections
Egypt's complicated vote
- Three separate polls stretched over months
- Elections to 498-member People's Assembly (lower house) - 28 Nov-10 Jan 2012
- Elections to 270-strong Shura Council (upper house) - 19 Jan -22 Feb 2012
- Presidential elections due mid-2012
- Two-thirds of members for both houses elected by PR
- One-third chosen by first-past-the-post system
- Provinces divided into three groups, voting on different dates
- More than 40 political parties compete, fielding more than 10,000 candidates
The Parliament Elections are to be held in 3 stages -
Nov28,2011;
Dec14,2011 and
Jan 3,2012
for the 498 seat People's Assembly,Lower House of the parliament and 2 days given to voting in each round.Under the highly complex system being used, voters were required to pass 3 votes- 2 for individual candidates and 1 for a party.
The parliamentary elections vote being staged over 6 weeks is Egypt's1st free polls after a series of rigged elections under Hosni Mubarak, who after almost 30 years in power was driven from office by a popular uprising in February 2011.
Elections to 270-strong Shura Council (upper house) is to take place between Jan 29,2012-March11,2012
About 50 million people are eligible to vote out of a population in excess of 85 million - with candidates from 50 registered political parties. Forty party lists and blocs composed of multiple parties are standing, including at least three parties established by former ruling National Democratic Party members whom the democracy movement has tried and failed to exclude.
Egyptians are voting under rules set by the military. They are choosing 498 members of the lower house from among 6,700 candidates; 332 seats will be selected from party lists according to proportional representation, while 166 seats will be allocated to independents under a first-past-the-post system
Abdel Moez Ibrahim, Head of the Egyptian Election Commission
Turnout in the opening phase of Egypt's 1st post-revolution election was 62 percent, the highest in the country's history, Election Commission Head Abdel Moez Ibrahim announced.
Egyptians go to the 1st phase of polls on Monday Nov 28,2011 to cast their votes for a new parliament after the end of the 30-year rule of Hosni Mubarak in Feb 2011.
Big Turnout in Egypt Post-Mubarak Election
Ever since an 18-day uprising toppled Mubarak's regime and brought the military to power, Egypt has gone through violence, splits in society, a worsening economy and a surge in street crime. Still, people were eager to cast a free vote, even though much is unclear about what will happen next, whatever the outcome.Even before polls opened at 8 a.m voters stood in lines stretching several hundred yards, suggesting a respectable turnout.They waited in long lines for hours to vote.
Egyptian voters turned out in big numbers on a mostly peaceful first day of voting today, driven by optimism to build a new era and the threat of fines if they stayed at home .Authorities report unexpectedly high turnout reaching an estimated 70 to 80 per cent over the two days of voting.Polling stations have been ordered to open for two more hours to cope with a higher than expected turnout in the country's first elections since the fall of Hosni Mubarak.
5 of the 10 Egyptian provinces have voted in the first round of the election. The country’s supreme election commission counts 17.5 million voters in those territories, with the total throughout Egypt number reaching more than 50 million.
Egyptians gather outside a polling site to vote in the parliamentary elections in Cairo
Voters line up outside a polling center beneath campaign posters on the first day of parliamentary elections in Cairo
Women take cover from the rain under umbrellas as they queue outside a polling station in Alexandria
A woman shows her identification card as she waits to vote at a polling station in the town of Ibshawai
An Egyptian man votes at a polling center in Shubra
A man casts his vote at a polling station in Cairo
An elderly Egyptian man shows his ink-stained thumb after casting his vote at a polling station in the Manial neighbourhood
Egypt Election Results Delayed
The elections results are expected to be announced on Thursday December01,2011.The Egyptian electoral commission blamed the delay on the high number of votes cast. State TV said they would be released on Friday. The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces said they would now be revealed on Friday or Saturday.
Egyptian election officials count ballots for the first round of elections in Cairo
Islamists Dominate Egypt Election Results
Mohammed Morsi, President of the Islamist, Freedom and Justice Party (FJP)
Dec 4,2011 Sunday's results only reflect the performance of the parties for only one-third of the 498 seats
Parties Position in the 1st phase of parliamentary elections
Islamist parties took more than 60% of the vote in the first round of Egypt's parliamentary polls, according to partial results provided by the High Election Commission.Islamist-led party lists secured about 2/3rd of votes in the 1st round of the election.The biggest single bloc went to the alliance led by the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party that won about 37 % of the vote, with the hardline Salafi al-Nour Party listing coming a surprise second with 24%.
The liberal Egyptian Bloc and another liberal party, Wafd, together secured about 20 % of votes for their lists.
The Freedom and Justice Party, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, garnered 36.6% of the 9,734,413 ballots cast for the party lists, while the conservative Nour Party captured 24.4%.
The liberal Egyptian Bloc came in third with just 13.4% of the votes. Another liberal group, the Wafd Party, received 7.1%, while the moderate Islamist Wasat or Centrist Party took 4.3%.
Egypt Election: Second Phase Dec 14,2011
Islamists are poised to further consolidate their overwhelming lead in the second phase of Egyptian parliamentary polls, as millions headed to polling booths on Wednesday Dec 14,2011 to decide the future of 9 governorates.Voting has been relatively peaceful, with no major irregularities reported.
Unlike the previous phase, almost all polling stations opened on time, according to the Supreme Judicial Committee for Elections.The second Phase is covering 9 of Egypt's 27 governorates, including Giza, Beni Sueif, Sohag, Aswan, Menoufiya, Sharqiya, Beheira, Ismailia and Suez.
Clashes Between Military Police And Demonstrators- Dec 16,2011
Egyptian soldiers clashed with hundreds of rock-throwing protesters in central Cairo for a second consecutive day on Saturday, hurling stones from rooftops and firing water from hoses in a crackdown that has left at least eight people dead.
Early Saturday, hundreds of protesters hurled stones at security forces who have sealed off the streets around the country's parliament building with barbed wire and large concrete blocks. Soldiers on rooftops pelted the crowds below with stones, prompting many of the protesters to pick up helmets, satellite dishes or sheets of metal to try to protect themselves.Witnesses said soldiers wielding wooden sticks and dressed in riot gear chased protesters through the streets, forcing them to retreat to nearby Tahrir Square.Later, soldiers stormed into Tahrir to disperse the protesters, and set fire to their tents. A huge cloud of black smoke hung over downtown Cairo as the tents burned.
The violence first began late Thursday after soldiers stormed an antimilitary protest camp outside the Cabinet building near Tahrir Square, expelling demonstrators demanding an end to military rule and an immediate transfer of power to a civilian authority .
Egyptian women protest abuse by soldiers
Thousands of Egyptian women marched in the streets of Cairo on Tuesday Dec 20,2011, protesting abuse by soldiers who dragged women by the hair, stomped on them and stripped one half naked on the street while cracking down on anti-military protesters in scenes that shocked many in the conservative society.
Even before the protest was over, the ruling military council issued an unusual apology for what it called "violations" - a quick turnaround after days of dismissing the significance of the abuse.The council expressed "deep regret to the great women of Egypt" and reaffirmed "its respect and total appreciation for the women of Egypt and their right to protest, effectively and positively participate in the political life on the road to the democratic transition." It promised it was taking measures to punish those responsible for violations
Islamists Continue Gains In Second Round Vote
Election commission chief Abdel-Moez Ibrahim announced the results on Saturday Dec 24,2011 -Muslim Brotherhood won around 86 of estimated 180 seats or 47 percent.
The Al-Nour Party, the political arm of the ultraconservative Salafi movement, won around 20 percent of the vote.
The secular alliance of Egyptian Bloc and youth Revolution won less than 10 percent of the seats.
Egypt Election: Third Phase Jan 03,2012
Egyptian voters are taking part in the 3rd and final round of elections to the lower house of parliament in nine provinces of the country.
Parliament Elections - Final Results
Final results on Saturday Jan 21,2012 showed that Islamist parties won nearly three-quarters of the seats in parliament in Egypt's first elections since the ouster of authoritarian president Hosni Mubarak, according to election officials.
A coalition led by the fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood won 47 percent, or 235 seats in the 498-seat parliament. The ultraconservative Al-Nour Party was second with 25 percent, or 125 seats.
Egypt’s Parliament holds first session
Egypt’s parliament began its first session on Monday Jan 23,2012 The session was opened by Mahmoud al-Saqa, 81, a member of the liberal Wafd party who, as the oldest member of the lower house, was acting as speaker. The session began with a moment of silence for those killed in the uprising against Mubarak.
One of parliament's first tasks is to pick a new speaker, expected to be Mohamed Saad el-Katatni, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party, which won the largest number of seats in the election.
Egypt’s Parliament holds first session
Egypt’s parliament began its first session on Monday Jan 23,2012 The session was opened by Mahmoud al-Saqa, 81, a member of the liberal Wafd party who, as the oldest member of the lower house, was acting as speaker. The session began with a moment of silence for those killed in the uprising against Mubarak.
One of parliament's first tasks is to pick a new speaker, expected to be Mohamed Saad el-Katatni, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party, which won the largest number of seats in the election.
