Brotherhood's FJP wins 59 per cent of Egypt Shura Council seats

Islamists realise another electoral landslide as FJP, Salafist Nour Party together secure more than four fifths of seats in upper house of parliament

The Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) has captured 24 seats in the second and final round of polling for Egypt's Shura Council (the upper, consultative house of parliament), the Brotherhood's official website reported on Thursday.
This brings the total number of council seats held by the FJP to 106, representing 59 per cent of the total assembly.
Of the council's 270 members, 180 are elected directly, while the remaining 90 are appointed for a six-year term by the president of the republic.
In Egypt's first post-Mubarak parliamentary polls, the FJP managed to capture 265 of 508 seats in the People's Assembly (the lower house of parliament), representing about 47 per cent of the assembly.
Official election results for the Shura polls will be formally announced on Saturday, according to Egypt's Supreme Electoral Commission.
Shura Council polling was held in two stages, with second-stage runoffs wrapping up on Thursday. The polling was dominated by Islamist parties, namely the FJP and the Salafist Nour Party, which together secured more than 80 per cent of the total seats in the council.
Unlike the 2011/12 People's Assembly elections, voter turnout for the Shura Council polls was considerably lower, with less than 10 per cent of eligible Egyptian voters casting ballots compared to 52 per cent for People's Assembly elections.
The Shura Council, which plays a purely consultative role in the Egyptian legislative process, is expected to convene its first session on 28 February.