Egyptian voters are going to the polls on Sunday in nine districts, for the second phase of the parliamentary elections. In the first round, the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) has managed to maintain its dominance, securing 112 out of 164 seats, but the officially banned Muslim Brotherhood movement won a surprise 34 seats, twice its tally in 2000.
Close to 1,800 candidates are battling over 144 seats in the current round. The final phase will begin on December 1. If the Muslim Brotherhood wins a similar amount of seats in the next two phases, this would give it close to 100 out of 454 seats in parliament. The movement’s candidates do not run under its name, as it has been banned since 1954, but rather as independents.
Election monitors and human rights organizations said after the first phase last week, that there were many election irregularities and even threats from the ruling NDP against supporters of other parties, especially the Muslim Brotherhood.
The movement calls for implementing Islamic law (Shari’a) and its slogan in the election campaign was ‘Islam is the Solution.’ It is also trying to show a moderate and progressive face and has advocated democratic reform.