The National Elections Authority (NEA) has announced that registration for candidates applying to take part in the House of Representatives elections will open on 17 September. The elections themselves will take place over two stages, between 21 October and 14 December.
Candidates can undergo the required medical check-ups a few days before the start of candidacy registrations until 26 September.
A number of currently serving Members of Parliament (MPs) undertook the necessary medical check-ups on Saturday, with preparations for Egypt’s parliamentary elections expected to increase during the current week after the NEA announcement.
Tamer Marei, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health and Population for the Red Sea Governorate, said that 11 potential candidates came, on Sunday, to sign a medical examination form at the Hurghada General Hospital. They have expressed their desire to run in the Parliamentary elections for the Red Sea Governorate’s three departments.
The NEA emphasised that candidates can use the Ministry of Health website to report their personal data, select the nearest hospital or the lab, and make an appointment for the medical check-up.
The first stage, which will take place between 21 October and 30 November, will cover 14 governorates. These include: Giza; Fayoum; Beni Suef; Minya; Assiut; New Valley; Sohag; Qena; Luxor; Aswan; the Red Sea; Alexandria; Beheira; and Marsa Matruh.
The second stage, which will take place between 4 November and 14 December, will cover 13 governorates. These will be: Cairo; Qalioubiya; Daqahleya; Menoufia; Gharbeya; Kafr El-Sheikh; Sharqeya; Damietta; Port Said; Ismailia; Suez; North Sinai; and South Sinai.
Many politicians believed the NEA would announce the timetable for the House of Representatives elections once the Senate election finish, on 16 September, and that candidate registration would likely open in October.
Following the NEA’s announcement of the registration and voting dates on Friday, several political parties began preparing their lists of candidates.
The pro-government Mostaqbal Watan said, on Sunday, that it is currently leading a coalition that will contest the 284 seats reserved to party lists.
The coalition includes 12 political parties: Mostaqbal Watan; Al-Wafd; the Guardians of the Nation; Modern Egypt; the Egyptian Socialist Democratic Party; the People’s Republican; the Reform and Development; Tagammu; the Generation’s Will; the Egyptian Freedom; the Justice; and the Congress.
Mahmoud Nafadi, head of the Parliamentary Media Journalists Association, said that the electoral scene began to take shape a few days ago. He noted that, on Sunday, a unified national list was announced led by Mostqabal Watan along with 12 other parties, including the Coordination of Youth Parties. This is a similar occurrence to events that took place during the Senate elections.
In August, Mostaqbal Watan formed a coalition for the Senate to run for 100 party list seats. The coalition, officially entitled “the National Unified List”, won the party list seats unopposed.
Nafadi added that there is another electoral bloc, called “The Independents’ Party”, led by New Independents Party head Hisham Anani, alongside a third group called “The National Movement”.
He confirmed that there will be strong competition for the individual seats, with as many as 25 candidates for some seats.
Nafadi pointed out that it is difficult to compete in the list system, but is commensurately easier to run for individual seats. Where lists include strong personalities and established parties, it can be said that there may be competition.
A total of 568 seats will be up for grabs in Egypt’s upcoming House of Representatives elections, while another 28 seats (5%) will be appointed by the president, bringing the chamber seats to a total of 596.
The 568 seats are split equally between individual and party list deputies, in which there will be 284 candidates from each category. The House of Representatives election law stipulates that 25% of the total seats must be reserved for women.
Article 10 of the House of Representatives’ Law, or Law 140 of 2020, stipulates that a hopeful seeking to run in parliamentary elections should submit a number of papers, including a medical check-up document showing that he/she tests negative for drugs.
