CAIRO: The electoral silence period for the first phase of Egypt’s parliamentary elections starts Friday at noon.
Spokesperson of the High Elections Committee (HEC) Omar Marwan said the committee “will take strict measures including the exclusion of candidates violating the rules,” Youm7 reported.
The voting for Egyptians abroad is scheduled to take place on Oct. 17-18 and for Egyptians inside Egypt Oct. 18-19. Campaigning for the first phase kicked off Sept. 29.
According to the timeline set by HEC, results are scheduled to be announced Oct. 20. Unsuccessful candidates may file their appeals against the results October 20-21 with a final say on the appeals announced by HEC October 21.
The run-offs for the first phase will take place Oct. 26 and 27 for Egyptian voters abroad and Oct. 27 and 28 for voters inside Egypt.
In a news conference earlier this month, Marwan announced that 2,573 independent candidates, including 112 women, will be competing for 226 seats while six party lists will be competing for 60 seats in the first phase.
Egypt’s House of Representatives will comprise of 596 members, with 448 to be elected as independents, 120 through the winner-take-all party lists system, with 28 seats to be appointed by the president, HEC announced in a news conference late August.
Egypt has not had a parliament since June 2012, after the Islamist-dominated People’s Assembly was dissolved per a court order about six months after its election.