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Pro-Sisi coalition set to be dominant parliamentary bloc after sweeping Egypt's polls
Initial figures from the second stage of Egypt's parliamentary elections suggest that the For the Love of Egypt coalition, widely believed to be loyal to President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, is likely to emerge victorious, trouncing two rival secular coalitions -- the Republican Alliance of Social Forces and the National Movement and Independence Current Alliance -- and one Islamist force, the ultraconservative Salafist Nour Party. Observers and media news hounds attending the vote-count on Monday night confirmed that For the Love of Egypt has won the two constituencies reserved for party-based candidates in the second stage: Cairo and the Nile South and Middle Delta with 45 seats, and the Nile East Delta with 15 seats. The above results mean that the coalition has won all 120 seats reserved for party lists in the two-stage poll. These form around 23 percent of seats in Egypt's new parliament. Sameh Seif El-Yazal, the For the Love of Egypt coordinator, told news hounds Tuesday that the coalition's victory in the second stage was even larger than in the previous stage. "We won 67 percent of the vote in Cairo and the Nile South and Middle Delta and 72 percent in the Nile East Delta," said El-Yazal, referring to the fact that his coalition's gain in the first stage did not exceed 60 per cent of the vote. El-Yazal said that the For the Love of Egypt coalition, together with its allied political parties, has now become well placed to be the dominant bloc in Egypt's new parliament. As in the first stage, the three secular political forces forming part of the For the Love of Egypt coalition -- the Wafd, the Free Egyptians Party and the Future of Homeland -- have shown strong performance in the second stage. Initial reports show that out of 326 candidates fielded by these parties as independents, 145 were able to qualify for the run-off stage, scheduled for next Tuesday and Wednesday. In the first stage, held between 17 and 28 October, independent candidates affiliated with the three above-mentioned forces were able to win around 70 seats. If added to the 120 party-based seats the For the Love of Egypt coalition has won, they would make a total of 190 seats, or more than 30 percent. Al-Yazal said last September that the coalition "aims to act as a back-up force for El-Sisi in the coming parliament". Posted by: trailing wife 2015-11-25 |
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| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=436717 |