old marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi He achieved a landslide election victory this Monday won with 89.6% of the votescompared to 97% in the previous presidential election in 2018. will allow you to direct Sweetcorn six more years.
In his speech after being declared the winner, Al Sisi promised citizens to continue construction”new republic“Egyptians are facing major “challenges” of the country, including the consequences of the serious economic crisis and the war in the Gaza Strip.
“Highest participation percentage in history”
The head of Egypt’s National Electoral Authority (NEA) said in a packed room. Hazem BedeviEl Sisi’s announcement that he received 39 million 702 thousand 451 votes (89.6%) caused a great wave of applause among the public.
Badawi assured that these elections are past elections ““Highest turnout in Egyptian history with 66.8% of the census”This means that 44 million 777 thousand 668 people out of 67 million 32 thousand 438 people who have the right to vote went to the polls.
One of the biggest concerns of Egyptian officials was participation; because in 2018 this rate was only 41%.
Badawi said 1.1 percent of registered votes were deemed invalid.
The ANE president, who attended the meeting, pointed out that “all categories of society participated” in these elections. There were no “violations”.
“This is the lowest percentage of spending in election campaigns and unprecedented neutrality,” he emphasized.
El Sisi assured in 2017 that he would only stay in power for two terms, but in 2019 he supported a controversial Constitutional reform that would keep him ruling the country until 2030. initially will no longer be able to participate in elections.
El Sisi’s rivals are unknown
These elections are the first since then. El Sisi came to power in 2014 Four candidates from different walks of life participated, but the former marshal’s opponents were almost unknown to the public.
The second candidate who received the most votes in these elections Hazim OmerThe Republican People’s Party (CHP) cast 1 million 986 thousand 352 (4.5%) votes.
Omer followed. Farid ZahranThe chairman of the Egyptian Social Democratic Party (PES) ranked last with 1 million 776 thousand 952 votes (4%). Abdul Sanad Yamama, the leader of the Vefd Party, received 822,606 (1.9%) votes.
Although the election commission said there were no violations, observer teams consisting of Al Sisi’s two candidates assured EFE that there were parties associated with the president”They “bribed” people with money and food Going to polling stations, among other types of irregularities already recorded in previous elections.
El Sisi’s challenges
This left its mark on the elections fear of possible displacement Palestinians from Gaza to Egypt, but it is also due to the general dissatisfaction of the population in the face of the severe economic crisis that the country is going through, characterized by official inflation of almost 40% and the depreciation of more than half of the Egyptian pound.
These elections were originally planned for 2024 but were brought forward given the harsh and unpopular measures the Government would have to take to alleviate the crisis and comply with the requirements of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Regarding the Gaza war, in which Egypt was one of the mediators along with Qatar and the USA, 69-year-old Al Sisi said that the Egyptian people, He voted not only for himself but also for the Palestinian cause in the elections.
“I express my great appreciation and gratitude to everyone who participated in this important event (…) Especially for this ongoing war on our eastern borders We are making every effort to prevent further” he argued. He added that this conflict “poses a threat to Egypt’s national security in particular and to the Palestinian cause in general.”
He stated that Egyptians “lining up” to vote for him would “not only elect a president for a new mandate, but also express to the world their rejection of this inhumane war.”