Local and international remarks:

The Maat Center for Jurist and Constitutional Studies published a report prepared by Abdul Nasser Qandil discussing the violations and excesses that were made in the elections. The report includes the Maat mission of creating new forms of control that support the views calling for the activation of the role of the civil society organizations in keeping a watch on the elections and reveals the aspects of excesses that may be committed during the electoral process whether deliberately or not. At the same time, it represents the form of control with all the objectivity that is inherent in it and that replies to those who cast doubt on the benefit that could be reaped from the electoral process.

The Human Rights Watch has declared that the campaign of arrests launched by the government in the ranks of the Islamists before the local council elections was an “open” attempt to rig the elections. It should be recalled that the Egyptian authorities arrested 800 members of the MB Group, which is the largest opposition movement in Egypt, without making charges against them. These included 150 persons who should have nominated themselves to run for the elections.

The Muslim Brotherhood [MB] Group:

A total of 20 members of the MB Group managed to nominate themselves for the local council elections amid charges made by the opposition forces and the MB Group against the ruling NDP that it was placing obstacles in the way of those who were seeking to nominate hemselves for the local council elections. The MB Group did not exclude the possibility of appealing the results of the local council elections in view of the continuation of the campaign of arrests.

Well over 5,000 MB candidates, who were excluded by the competent authorities, secured court orders binding the government autrhorities to register them in the lists of candidates. However, none of them could enforce the judicial order issued in his favor. The security services pursued MB elements in several Egyptian cities and villages in a bellicose atmosphere in which the government forces sought to stop the MB candidates from running for elections. The security authorities have in fact succeeded in stopping the MB candidates from nominating themselves in these elections. The MB Group said that its candidates will run for elections from inside their prisons.

The ruling National Democratic Party [NDP]:

The ruling National Democratic Party [NDP] denied charges that it was in control of the lists of candidates or that it was seeking to win all the seats of the local councils. It said that it wanted all parties to participate in the competition. It said that it expected that the number of winners by acclaim would not be more than 30 to 35 per cent of the total number of seats in the governorates. The ruling NDP nominated 52,000 candidates in all Egyptian cities where NDP candidates won by acclaim because there were no opposition candidates to compete with them.

The Opposition:

The number of the candidates of the opposition political parties totaled 1,050, including 600 candidates of the Wafd liberal party, 230 candidates of the leftist National Progressive Unionist Grouping Party, 170 candidates of the Arab Nasserite Party, and 28 candidates of the new Jabhah [Front] Party. As for the small parties which do not have a popular base, they nominated a small number of candidates, i.e. the Egyptian Socialist Arab Party nominated 18 candidates all of whom were competing in the three governorates of Cairo, Alexandria and al-Daqhaliyah. As for the El Salam Party, which is headed by Ahmad al-Fusali, and which is facing numerous problems, it nominated one candidate, Ibrahim abdul Mun’im, who occupies the post of secretary general of the party. Among the parties that decided to boycott the elections was the World Peace Party.

Importance of the local elections:

The power of the local councils stems from a constitutional amendment that was introduced in 2005 requiring any independent candidate for the post of president of the republic to secure by acclaim the support of 65 elected members of the People’s Assembly, 25 Shura Council members, al council members. The ruling NDP controls 99 per cent of the local council seats while the remaining seats are occupied by the Wafd party, the Progressive National Unionist Grouping Party, and the Nasserite Arab Party.

Party elections:

The General Congress of the leftist opposition Progressive National Unionist Grouping Party re-elected its president Rif’at El Sa’id as president of the party for a new four-year term after winning over his competitor, former parliament deputy abu-al-Izz El Hariri by a rate of 72 per cent, i.e. El Sa’id won 422 votes while El Hariri won 169.

The problems of nomination:

Throughout the month of March, the nomination process was encountered by a series of problems and complications in the various Egyptian governorates. The problems were generated by the refusal of the competent committees to accept the nomination application and other administrative obstacles placed in the way of the opposition