CAIRO - Egyptian expats started voting on Thursday in the last stage of the parliamentary elections in embassies and consulates worldwide, after the Higher Elections Commission (HEC) made the voting cards available on line. The voting process will last until Monday, followed by the elections on Tuesday and Wednesday. Elections will take place in nine governorates: Qena, Minya, Mersa Matrouh, New Valley, North Sinai, South Sinai, Daqahliya, Gharbiya and Qaliubiya. “People can vote until Monday morning,” Amr Roshdi, the spokesman of the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, was quoted by the official Middle East News Agency (MENA) on Thursday as saying. People have can send in their cards by email or present them in person, Roshdi clarified, adding that the vote count for expats will begin on Tuesday. Egyptian embassies have done all they can to ensure that the voters can cast their ballots smoothly and easily. The Egyptian Embassy in Jordan has set up a computer-equipped room to be used for both voting and counting, Ambassador Amr Abul Atta said, adding that this will speed up the voting and counting. In France, more than 1,300 Egyptians are eligible to vote, while about 14 million Egyptians at home are eligible to vote in Tuesday's elections. In the first two stages of the elections, Islamists have achieved a majority: the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) lead Parliament, followed by the Salafist Al-Nour Party. The FJP have so far secured 48 per cent of the seats in Parliament, while Al- Nour have capture 24 per cent of seats in the Assembly. The surprisingly strong electoral showing by the two parties will likely give Egypt's Islamist current more than a two-thirds majority in the People's Assembly, giving it considerable influence over future legislation. Many political parties have competed against the FJP, something unprecedented in Egypt's parliamentary history. Ultimately, it is the people who will decide. It is said that the Salafists are not a homogeneous group like the Brotherhood, but this is because the Salafists are new in politics. During Mubarak's 30-year rule, they were permitted to work in mosques and were therefore able to establish a broad popular base. They relied on this when they entered politics and contested parliamentary polls. Most Egyptians are pinning their hopes on the Islamists, who, they say, have an ambitious dream for Egypt. Meanwhile, the Muslim Brotherhood have said that economic freedom and social justice represent their two chief priorities, followed by public security. "People are fed up of the liberals," Mona Mohamed, 24, told The Egyptian Gazette, adding that the Islamists fear God. Some people expect that this, the third stage of the elections, will be fiercely fought, as many governorates believe in the cohesion of the family, something that has proved to be effective in the polls. Most of these governorates are also home to the many of the foloul (remnants), people who belonged to the dissolved National Democratic Party.
