Voter apathy looms over Egypt's parliamentary election

Low turnout expected in two-phase ballot amid economic woes and virtual certainty of loyalist chamber

Voters prepare to cast their ballots at a polling station in Giza. AFP

Egyptians headed to the polls on Monday for the first part of a two-stage vote expected to produce a tame parliament dominated by government loyalists, mirroring its forerunners in the past decade.

The two-day phase of voting in 14 of Egypt's 27 provinces began amid widespread predictions that the election will be marred by a poor turnout. The election three months ago for the 300-seat upper house garnered an anaemic turnout of just 17.1 per cent, according to official figures.

The voters' apathy is largely rooted in widespread perception of the elections as a carefully choreographed affair masterminded by authorities to ensure that the result is greatly in favour of government loyalists and that the more vocal and popular of government critics are denied seats.

Another reason for the apathy is believed to be the preoccupation of most Egyptians by the grinding day-to-day struggle to make ends meet at a time of soaring prices and wages failing to meet basic needs despite repeated hikes decreed by the government.

An Egyptian voter prepares to cast her ballot. AFP

Compounding the nation's economic woes, Egypt's main statistics agency on Monday said inflation quickened for the first time since May on the back of a surprise jump in rents.

Consumer costs in urban areas grew an annual 12.5 per cent in October, compared with 11.7 per cent the month before, said the agency. President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, however, has been talking up the economy recently as well as lavishly praising the resilience of Egyptians struggling to cope with the soaring cost of living.

“The people can see that our economic conditions are difficult but they also see the government making serious efforts to overcome them,” he said last month. “We pay heed to public opinion but the challenge facing us is very big and we are doing everything we can … With God's grace, our economy is improving.”

The scene and the atmosphere at polling stations across the 14 provinces where voting took place on Monday was identical with those of past elections, with Egyptian flags, patriotic music, cheerful voters and ululating women.

“This shows the resolve of Egyptians to freely elect their representatives,” former legislator Ahmed Murtada Mansour told reporters after he voted in Giza's Dokki district.

A voter at a polling station in Giza, the twin city of Cairo. AFP

In the nearby district of Agouza, 73-year-old Samir El Sayed told reporters that his love for his country motivated him to come out and vote. “I am Egyptian before anything else. Voting is my way to say to Egypt that I am right behind it,” he said after he voted.

This week's Monday-Tuesday vote is for 284 of the house's 596 seats. Voters return to the polls on November 24 and 25 in 13 other provinces to fill the same number of seats.

Once the combined 568 seats are decided, President El Sisi, a former armed forces chief first elected president in 2014, appoints another 28 deputies. He appointed 100 of the upper house's 300 members. The final results of the election for the lower house, or Majlis El Nawab, will be announced next month.

Half the 568 seats up for grabs are elected through a winner-takes-all system of “closed lists” that pro-government coalitions are expected to sweep. The second half is contested by individual candidates, including independents. Pro-government candidates are again expected to dominate.

This week's vote is taking place in provinces that include Giza – the more urban areas of which are part of greater Cairo – Luxor, Aswan, Red Sea, the Mediterranean port of Alexandria – Egypt's second-largest city – and the remote New Valley.

Egyptian expatriates, who are estimated to number about 10 million, cast their ballots on Friday and Saturday. The overseas balloting took place at 136 Egyptian embassies and consulates in 117 nations.

People queue to vote at a school serving as a polling station. Reuters