Egypt prepares for upper house polls

Egyptians voting this week in elections to parliament’s second chamber must wear masks and observe social distancing at the polls, precautions against the spread of coronavirus, which may be making a comeback.

The election of the 300-seat and largely consultative upper chamber began on Sunday and continued yesterday for Egyptian expatriates, who are allowed to vote online or by mail because of the pandemic.

Balloting moves to Egypt today and again it will be staged over two days.

Results are scheduled for August 19 and second round balloting is to take place on September 8-9.

Authorities began disinfecting thousands of polling stations yesterday to limit the spread of coronavirus.

The creation of an upper chamber was part of constitutional amendments approved in a referendum last year.

Of its 300 members, 100 will be presidential appointees, while the remainder will be elected by direct balloting through closed party lists or individual candidates.

The new chamber’s main task will be to vet draft legislation on issues to do with national sovereignty, the constitution, or on foreign treaties.

These would be referred to the chamber by either the president or the House of Deputies. This task was part of the mandate of the State Council, a senior judicial body that vetted legislation before its adoption by the legislature. That role was stripped from the council under the 2019 constitutional amendments.

The new chamber, which replaces one annulled seven years ago, will serve a five-year term.

This week’s election coincides with growing signs that the coronavirus pandemic may be making a comeback after weeks of decline that gave Egyptians and their government hope that it might be over after nearly 100,000 confirmed cases and more than 5,000 deaths, according to official figures.

After a decline between late July and the first week of August, the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases was on the rise, although the numbers remained low compared with June – by far the worst month since the pandemic began in mid-February – and early July.

The increase began on Wednesday with 123 cases and continued until Monday, when 178 cases were recorded.