CAIRO: Egypt's ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) announced on Tuesday that it would open the filing period for potential Parliamentary candidates on October 12. The SCAF also said the parliamentary elections will start on November 28 and will be divided into three stages within a mixed system that includes both candidates from the individual party lists. The SCAF was under great public pressures for setting a timetable for the elections, the first free one after the 30-year rule of ousted president Hosni Mubarak. Activists organized tens of marches and protests to force the SCAF to keep its promise of handing over power to a civilian-elected government. The SCAF also announced it is opening the door for nominations of both the lower and the upper houses. Candidates will be filling 498 seats in the lower house, while the upper house will have 270. The new law dose not allow independent candidates to join any political party once they are elected. The lower house election first stage is scheduled for November 28, the second is set for December 14 and the third on January 3. The first session of the new Parliament will kick off on March 17, 2012. The upper house elections will start their first stage on January 29 and their third round will end on March 11, and the first session will be held on March 24. The SCAF was criticized for cancelling the women's quota in the lower house, which guaranteed female representation. The new law says half of the seats on both houses dedicated to workers and farmers must have at least one female candidate on each list. BM
