8th November 2020
The Egyptian Alliance for Human Rights and Development
The Forum for Development and Human Rights Dialogue
An Intensive Turnout and a Voting Discipline
(Parliament Elections – Second Stage)
With the end of the electoral scene of the first round of the second stage of parliament elections of 2020, voting box were closed in 13 Egyptian governorates where there was voting to elect 141 parliamentarians for individual seats through 72 constituencies where 2083 individual candidates have competed from whom 1679 as independent candidates and 404 as party candidates, in addition to 142 candidates of list system as two party lists competed in Cairo and middle Delta constituency which are (the National List for Egypt – the list of the Independent Alliance) and two lists in East Delta constituency which are (the National List for Egypt – the List of Egypt’s Sons).
In fact, the voting process in its second and last day has characterized with many features and scenes which can be described with being positive and developed; the matter which contributes to a voting discipline and a satisfied end of the voting process. The most important features can be monitored as follows:
Firstly: the second day witnessed strong discipline status upon opening the voting committees in its legal opening time without any delays the same as the first day as the alliance observers did not monitor any delays except in a committee in Sidi Abd El Monem Primary School in the eastern bank in Shebeen Al Kom constituency in Al Monofia as the committee was late for 30 minutes, the committee no. 138 in Ali Abn Abi Talib Secondary School in Helwan constituency, committee no. 53 in Omar Abn El Khattab Primary School in Al Amiria and the committee 62 and 63 in Al Azhar Kuwaiti Institute in Kafr El Sheikh while many governorates did not have any late committees such as Al Sharkia, Al Daqahlia, Port Said and Al Gharibia.
Secondly: the executive and political leaders are still keen on participation and voting as an intended orientation to encourage voters to vote in and also to reassure the safety of measures and the voting headquarters. The most prominent of these leaders were Dr. Essam Al Gazzar, the minister of housing, Dr. Mohamed Saffan, the minister of manpower, Dr. Sayed El Osayer, the minister of agricultural and Dr. Ali Abd Al All, the speaker and head of the parliament whose voting was notable and remarkable in the committee of Workers’ University in Nasr City constituency despite his winning and success for the coming parliament for Aswan governorate.
Thirdly: with the start-up of the voting process in the second day, the central chamber of the Egyptian Alliance monitored the piece of news regarding the death of the former parliamentarian and the current candidate of Al Gamilia constituency Mohamed Hidar Baghdadi no. 2 which is a special case because it happened during voting which may lead to voting run-off in this constituency or the next candidate (after him) will be in the run-off round when he achieved what qualified him for that. This is a legal status organized by law of parliament no. 46 of 2014, the same as the cases happened during the Senate elections 2020 when the candidate Shaban Abd El Aleem in Bani Souif and the candidate Essam Barakat in Assuit died.
Fourthly: the Egyptian Alliance observers monitored great and strong commitment by the judges and the organization committees to the rules of social distancing, health safety and assuring wearing masks and having sanitizers’ bags which were provided with good quantities and for free in front of voting committees; the matter which was consistent with the instructions of the ministry of health and rules and regulations announced by Dr. Hala Zayid the minister of health. This was monitored in the committees 47 and 48 in Al Swedi Joint School in Darb Nigm constituency, committee no. 145 in Al Sofia Preparatory School in Kafr Sakr constituency, committee no. 182 in Al Zakazik Secondary School in Al Zakazik 1 constituency in Al Sharkia, the committees 131, 132 and 133 in Balteem Preparatory School, committee no. 120 in Al Shaheed Galal Shama in Al Hourya Village Qaleen constituency in Kafr El Sheikh, the committees 53, 54 and 55 in Al Nahda School in Al Tepeen and committee no. 48 in Om Al Abtaal School in Helwan constituency in Cairo.
Fifthly: unlike the complaints and reports monitored by the Egyptian Alliance or those submitted by the candidates or their representative to the National Election Committee in regard to existence of indulgence or slowing down in taking the legal procedures against electoral and promotion violations within the ‘campus’ of voting committees which led to some skirmishes between candidates’ supporters when judges and police officers were extremely strict in facing and dealing with these clashes and skirmishes. In addition, security member were keen on taking the candidates’ supporters away from the voting headquarters and providing a secure ‘campus’ for voters.
Sixthly: the phenomenon of public turnout to voting committees continued as an expression of a positive status of participation especially participation of categories of youth, women and elderly people as a direct effect of the indictors of the first stage which revealed the winning of 72 women and 37 young people with numbers and rate subjected to increase; the matter which is effective for these categories and their situation towards the voting process. This was monitored by the Egyptian Alliance observers in many subcommittees among which were committees 120, 121 and 122 in 15 May School for Basic Education, the committee no. 131 in Al Solib Preparatory School in Helwan, committees no. 19 and 20 in Asmaa Batra School, committee 118 in Al Azhar Institute for girls in Misr El Gedida in Cairo, committee 65 in Al Shaheed Hamid Ayaad in Al Zafaran in Al Hamool constituency, committee no. 200 in Al Zahraa School in Kafr El sheikh, committees 176 and 177 in Al Nasr Primary School for girls in Basoon constituency in Al Gharbia, the committees 131 and 132 in Akhmeen constituency in Al Kanater Al Khairia in Al Qalubia and committee 53 in Al Shaheed Abd El Rahman Samra in Shatanoof in Al Monofia.
Seventhly: despite the decrease of promotion phenomena in front of voting committees and turning the processes of buying votes and providing commodities and supplies card to secret phenomena after they were in public in front of many committees yesterday as they were faced by strict security members and were prevent from doing that. The Alliance observers monitored these promotion practices by a number of candidates’ supporters in front of many committees such as committee 8 in Sidi Ghazi School for Basic Education, the committee in Al Halafi Primary School in Al Hamol, the committee 167 and 168 in Al Ayash Al Gharbi Primary School in Al Borolos in Kafr El Sheikh, committee 132 in Kafr Mohamed Hussien School in Al Zakzik constituency, committee 273 in the Official Language School in Faqos, committee 116 in the headquarter of irrigation engineering in Al Ibrahimya constituency, committee 78 in Mohamed Ahmed Labib School in Dirb Nagim constituency in Al Sharkia, committees 96 and 97 in Kafr El Zayat Primary School, committee 8 in Al Shaheed Aref School in Kafr El Zayat constituency, the committees 110 and 111 in Basuin Preparatory Institute for boys in Al Basuin constituency in Al Gharbia and the committees 129 and 130 in Al Solib Secondary School in Al Tibeen constituency in Cairo.
Eighthly: the alliance observers monitored new case of difference between the data of one voter in committee no. 97 in Al Amiria Secondary School for boys registered on the website of the National Election Commission with no. 2897 in election sheets and that in the bonds of the subcommittee with a different number which is documented as a case to be checked with the national commission.
Ninthly: as the voting process was about to end and the start of counting votes, the voter were mobilized with intensified operations in front of voting committees headquarters upon the competitors’ desire to determine the seat from the first round or guaranteeing being in the run-off round which is an usual electoral behaviour done by the candidates with the end of voting in addition to employees who are keen on voting by the end of working hours which leads to group transportations the matter which was monitored in committee 17 in Hoda Sharawy School in Al Salam Station constituency, committee 66 in Kasr El Dopara School in Kasr El Nile constituency, the committees 9 and 10 in Al Gamyia Al Khairya School in Al Sayda Zienab, committee 76 in Al Shaheed Mohamed Gamal, Committee 68 in Ahmed Lofty Al Sayed School in Al Manyal, committees 24, 25 and 26 in Al Noqrashy School, the committees 53, 54, 55 in Al Nahda School Helwan constituency, committee 18 in Saray Al Qoba Preparatory School for girls, the committees 20 and 22 in Al Galil Language School in Al Zaytoon and Al Amirya constituency in Cairo, committee 8 in Al Shaheed Aref School in Kafr El Zayat constituency, the committees 110 and 111 in Al Basuin Preparatory Institute for boys in Al Basuin constituency in Al Gharbia, the committees 167 and 168 in Al Ayash Al Gharbi Primary School in Al Borolos constituency in Kafr El Sheikh, the committee 104 in Karnafeel Primary Joint School in Qalub constituency, the committees of Asmaa Bent Abi Bakr School in Qalub Al Balad region, the committee 36 in Al Shaheed Tarek in Kom Ashfeen in Al Qalubia, the committee 56 in Mohamed Abdo Ezzat School in Al Shobik Village in Al Zakazik constituency, the committee 143 in Al Salamoni Primary School in Haheya constituency and the committee 161 in Al Mahmodia School for Basic Education in Al Sharkia.
Tenthly: as the voting was about to end and voting boxes were about to be closed, the alliance observers monitored technical and security preparations to facilitate the processes of votes counting and secure the headquarters and bonds of voting in addition to providing lighting and backup generators in a way which guarantee the transparency and impartiality of the procedures which is assured by all the alliance observers as a systematic behaviour by the security agencies and the supervision and administration bodies of the electoral process.
The Egyptian Alliance for Human Rights and Development assures that the voting process held on 7th and 8th November 2020 of the first round of the second stage showed how much is the development witnessed by the national voting process and responses by the National Election Commission to what is monitored of electoral violations in a positive way as they sound the alarm in regard to the necessity of developing the legislative text regulating the elections in general especially what is related to control over financial expenditure or putting mechanisms or procedures for deterrence against bribes or affecting wills or biases of voters by financial promises or providing services or commodities.
