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Egypt holds second stage of parliament election

07 November 2020, MVT 15:56
A man casts his ballot at a polling station in the Egyptian capital's twin city of Giza on August 11, 2020 for the upper house election of the newly-created Senate. - The two-day vote for 200 of the Senate's 300 seats will be largely contested by candidates who back President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who has quietened most opposition within and outside the legislature. (Photo by Mohamed el-Shahed / AFP)
07 November 2020, MVT 15:56

Egyptians began voting Saturday in the second phase of a parliamentary election in which supporters of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi are expected to win.

Some 63 million of Egypt's more than 100 million people are eligible to elect 568 of the 596 lawmakers in the lower house, widely seen as a rubber-stamp body for executive policies.

The remaining deputies will be appointed by Sisi, a former general, whose government over the past six years has launched a severe crackdown on dissent, targeting journalists, bloggers, lawyers and intellectuals.

The first phase of voting took place last weekend in 14 governorates including the Mediterranean city of Alexandria and the south of Egypt.

The second and final phase, which wraps up on Sunday evening, is being held in 13 governorates, including Cairo, the Nile Delta and the Suez Canal.

The new parliament will be the second to convene under Sisi, who took office in 2014 after leading the military's ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi the previous year.

The outgoing legislature, elected in 2015, was packed with Sisi supporters and featured only a small opposition bloc known as 25/30.

Runoffs are due be held later in November and in December, and the winners will take their seats in parliament in January.

Cairo, Egypt | AFP

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