Haifaa Abu Ghazala, head of the elections observatory mission of the Arab League, announced in a Thursday press conference the outline of the final report to be issued on parliamentary elections soon.
Runoff elections for the second electoral phase concluded Wednesday, as Abu Ghazala said observers were able to visit 876 polling stations in this phase. She noted that a lower turnout was observed in participation in the runoffs than in the first round, and more voters’ participation in rural areas.
Generally, Abu Ghazala praised the judicial supervision and security measures to ensure the transparency and smooth operation of the elections.
However, she pointed out a few disruptions, such as delays in opening polling stations, and most importantly violations by candidates related to campaigning during electoral silence, in addition to the prevention of some observers from entering polling stations.
“But we do not believe the final results will be affected by those violations,” Abu Ghazala added. “As for what happened with observers, this stems from a lack of awareness of their role perhaps,” she said.
Final results of the elections should be announced by the Supreme Electoral Commission (SEC).
