Egyptians begin voting in 2nd phase of parliamentary elections

ISTANBUL

Egyptian voters headed to the polls on Monday for the second phase of the country's parliamentary elections.

This two-day phase covers 13 governorates comprising 73 electoral districts and 5,287 subcommittees, the state-run Al-Qahera News channel said.

Polling stations opened at 9 am (0600GMT) and will close at 9 pm (1800GMT).

A total of 1,316 candidates are competing for seats under the individual system, alongside one electoral list contesting the list-based districts.

The National Election Authority (NEA) urged citizens to participate in the vote, stressing its commitment to ensuring the integrity, transparency, and orderly conduct of the electoral process so that the “will of voters is accurately reflected at the ballot box.”

According to NEA estimates, around 35 million Egyptians are eligible to cast their ballots in this phase.

The results are scheduled to be announced on Dec. 2.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi cast his vote in the elections at a polling station in Heliopolis, east of Cairo, according to a statement by the presidency.

This round comes about a week after the NEA announced that a rerun would be held in 19 districts across half of the 14 governorates where the first phase of parliamentary elections took place following violations. The repeat vote is set for December.

This was the first time since Sisi took office in 2014 that the electoral commission has ordered a rerun of voting.

The polls are held almost three months after the elections of the Senate (the upper chamber of parliament) were conducted in August.

The 568-seat House of Representatives (lower house of parliament) has a five-year term. The president appoints 5% of its members.

The Senate also serves a five-year term with 300 members—one-third appointed by the president and two-thirds elected.