Egypt's opposition slams proposed electoral changes

Some opposition groups have spoken out against the recent amendments to the electoral law, arguing that they will allow large parties and former NDP members to dominate

After months of debate, political parties and movements in Egypt still do not seem to be happy with the new laws regulating the coming parliamentary elections. Some say they will keep on fighting for an all-list voting system, while others threaten to boycott the elections or even go back to protesting in the street until their demands are met.
Key amendments to two laws regulating the elections of the two houses of parliament – the Parliament (People's Assembly) and the Upper House (Shura Council) – were rammed through the cabinet on Sunday. They are expected to be officially endorsed by the ruling Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF).
Before Sunday's amendments, it was proposed that half of the deputies of each house would be elected through the party-list system, and the other half via individual candidacy. Now, under pressure from opposition forces, the government has decided to make the election of two thirds of the deputies via the party-list and the other half by individual candidacy.
The two laws set the number of MPs in the lower house at a total of 498, rather than 504, plus another 10 to be appointed by the president. This is up from the 454 members of the outgoing People's Assembly.
Under the laws, the chamber's 498 MPs will be elected from 83 districts covered by the individual candidacy system and 46 covered by the party list system.
The 83 districts covered by individual candidacy will produce 166 MPs, or two per district. The remaining 46 districts covered by the party list will produce 232, with the number of MPs elected in each district ranging from four to six.
A complementary law – under the title of “the electoral districts law” - will be soon issued, setting the number of deputies elected in each district under the party-list system, taking into account key factors such as density of population and geographical size.
Regarding the upper house of parliament, the Shura Council, its members will rise from 264 to 270; a third of them (90 members) will be presidential appointees. The house's members will be elected from 60 districts, 30 of which will be covered by individual candidacy and another 30 by the party list system. The 30 districts covered by individual candidacy will produce 60 MPs, or two per district. The 30 districts covered by the party list system will produce 120 members, their number ranging from four to six per district. The number in each district will be decided by the electoral districts law.
Minister of Local Development Mohamed Attia indicated that “a constitutional declaration will be soon issued, stating that the elections to the People's Assembly and Shura Council will be done via a mixture of the party-list and individual candidacy system… It is necessary that this mixed system be stated in a new constitutional declaration in order not to be contested before the Supreme Constitutional Court,” said Attia.
No sooner had the amendments been announced than political forces began expressing different reactions. Al-Wafd Party, which had asked for the abolition of the individual candidacy system altogether, initially welcomed the amendments. The former chairman of Al-Wafd said that the party had no objection to the new amendments, arguing that it helps meet the demands of the opposition to a large extent.
In general, Islamist forces, including the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party and various Salafist groups, welcomed the amendments. Mostafa El-Katatni, secretary-general of the Freedom and Justice Party, indicated that “we have no objections to the new amendments although we are in favour of abolishing the individual candidacy altogether.”
Individual candidacy was blamed for the proliferation of electoral fraud, vote-buying and intimidation under the regime of former president Hosni Mubarak. A statement from the Democratic Alliance, which includes 36 political parties, along with the Muslim Brotherhood and Al-Wafd, had earlier argued that maintaining the individual candidacy system would see the return to parliament of the same officials and corrupt businessmen that dominated the Mubarak regime's National Democratic Party (NDP).
Different political forces opened fire on the new amendments. Rifaat El-Said, chairman of the leftist Tagammu party, said that, “the amendments serve two main forces: the Muslim Brotherhood and the diehards of ousted President Hosni Mubarak's defunct National Democratic Party.” El-Said added that “it is these forces which enjoy great financial and political leverage, making them highly capable of competing in large-sized districts covered by the party-list system.”
Ahmed El-Fadally, chairman of the Democratic Peace Party, agrees with El-Said, explaining that “small and average-size political parties lack the financial and political capital necessary to stand against big forces like Muslim Brotherhood or Al-Wafd party in large-sized districts.” Worse, said El-Fadally, “the new amendments will force small and new parties to join alliance with big parties to stand in elections on one ticket rather than fielding candidates as independents.”
Ayman Nour, chairman of the new Ghad (Tomorrow) party sharply attacked the amendments, insisting that “the amendments serve NDP's diehards, who will exploit the districts covered by the individual candidacy system to return to parliament again.”
Differences also dominated the January 25 Revolution's youth movements. The January 25 Youth Coalition gave a cautious welcome to the amendments, announcing that 200 of its members would stand in the elections on one ticket.
The so-called Alliance of Egypt's Revolutionaries said that “it rejects the new amendments.” The Alliance called for a million-man protest in Tahrir Square next Friday to voice rejection of the amendments to the election law and the continued implementation of the emergency law.
Once enacted into a new constitutional declaration, SCAF will announcefinal timelines forthe upcoming parliamentary elections. Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, chairman of SCAF and minister of defence, said on 24 September that SCAF has no interest in adopting a certain election system, nor it is biased in favour of a certain political force at the expense of another and its major concern is allow a smooth transition to a democratically elected government.