Egypt's High Elections Commission has said the final results of the recently concluded first stage of parliamentary elections will most likely be announced Friday, October 30th. The much-delayed elections kicked off last week, with a two-day run-off vote for the first round drawing to a close on Wednesday. Turnout for this first round of elections, held in 14 of Egypt's 27 governorates, was only 26.6 percent of eligible voters, with no sign of increased participation in the run-offs. The final result of the poll is expected to be announced on Friday, while the results of the expat vote will come out Thursday, the electoral commission spokesman Omar Marwan said late Wednesday. Egypt's foreign ministry said that almost 20,000 out of the eligible 682,000 voters abroad have cast their ballot over the two-day elections that concluded Wednesday, including more than 10,000 in Kuwait alone. Marawan told a news conference that 91% of voters abroad who cast their ballots were male, leaving only 9% female expat voters. The new House of Representatives will be comprised of 596 MPs, 448 elected via individual seats and 120 from party lists. Twenty-eight will be appointed by the president. Egypt has been without a parliament since June 2012 when a court dissolved the body. President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has held legislative power since taking office. The last parliamentary elections held in Egypt came months after the toppling of longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak and witnessed a turnout of 62 percent in the first round. The second and final stage of the elections in the remaining governorates will take place on 21 and 22 November with run-offs, if necessary, due on 1-2 December. Source: Ahram Online
