Egypt’s National Elections Authority (NEA) denied receiving any complaints that would affect the electoral process, as the polls closed on the last day of the first phase of parliamentary elections.
Egyptians voted in 14 governorates amid strict health and security measures.
Head of NEA Lashin Ibrahim announced that authorities implemented strict precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus at polling stations.
He said the authority did not receive any complaints that would affect the elections as a whole, stating that the operating room continues to receive inquiries and complaints from all parties and is responding to them promptly.
Meanwhile, head of the Arab League mission tasked with observing the elections, Ahmed Rachid Khattabi, stressed that the process took place smoothly given the legal, organizational and procedural measures taken by the Authority.
He stated that the extensive security, logistic and precautionary measures had a positive impact on the overall electoral performance, allowing voters to cast their votes and carry out their national duty in a safe environment.
The Arab League issued a statement on Sunday praising the good organization of the polls, which reflects a confident political will to consolidate the foundations of the state of institutions and citizenship, the pillars of the rule of law, and rules of free choice.
Khattabi highlighted the 2019 constitutional amendments that allocated no less than 25 percent of parliamentary seats to female candidates.
This is a strong and clear indication of the state's desire to develop the political and electoral arena, which paves the way for a real female representation in the parliament, he added.
The second stage of the vote is scheduled on Nov. 7-8 in the country’s 13 other provinces, including Cairo and the Sinai Peninsula. The voting concludes with runoff elections.
A total of 568 seats in the lower chamber are up for grabs, with more than 4,000 candidates running as individuals competing for half of the seats. The other half of elected seats in the chamber are reserved for the more than 1,100 candidates running on four party lists.
The country's president will name 28 seats, or 5%, bringing the total number of seats in the lower chamber to 596.
