The front pages of both state-run and independent newspapers on Tuesday lead with news of Sunday's parliamentary election results.
State-run Al-Ahram bears on the top of its front page the headline: “100 seats for National Democratic Party (NDP), 6 for opposition and no seats for the banned group in the first round.”
Another headline reads: “Clashes due to wins in several constituencies, 3 election-related deaths in Sharqiya and Luxor and 25 supporters of Hamdin Sobhy arrested.”
The government-owned newspaper quotes Safwat al-Sherif, NDP Secretary General and speaker of the Shura Council, as saying that all indications suggest the success and efficiency of the party’s electoral plans and policies.
Al-Sherif categorically dismissed the Muslim Brotherhood’s (MB) accusations of vote-rigging, according to Al-Ahram, saying these are merely false allegations to cover their expected defeat.
He also said, according to Al-Ahram, that the fatal clashes that took place on election day were "normal incidents" that happen commonly throughout the world.
Al-Akhbar reports that al-Sherif is expecting fierce competition in the 5 December run-off vote. The government-owned daily also quotes Egyptian Minister of Information Anas al-Fiqqi as saying, “The second round’s propaganda will start immediately after the announcement of the official results.”
Al-Fiqqi also said, according to Al-Akhbar, that he filed a petition against satellite TV channel al-Hurra for violating the commission’s restrictions on media coverage for election day. The High Elections Commission (HEC) has referred the case to the public prosecution, the coverage says.
The papers also list the names of the NDP candidates who won in the preliminary election results with a top headline which reads: “The NDP leads and heads towards majority.”
According to the papers, Hamdy al-Sayyed, Abdal Ahad and Shobir are among the regime party’s candidates who qualified for run-offs; while the Wafd Party will compete with Badrawy and Lakh, Tagammu will compete with Rashwan.
Al-Akhbar dedicates its front page to elections results coverage. Its feature piece is accompanied by 31 photos of the candidates.
The paper leads with a headline: “The announcement of elections’ final results is today…the NDP sweeps and landslide defeat for the banned group’s candidates.”
Opposition papers, however, cover the elections with a different flavor.
According to Al-Wafd’s Tuesday coverage, the next People’s Assembly is invalid. The paper reports that civil society organizations declared in a press conference that the HEC failed to manage the election process, violating all laws, judicial provisions and international standards.
Moreover, those organizations accused the government and the NDP of rigging the election while sharply criticizing the security apparatus for barring opposition voters from entering polling stations in different governorates.
Another headline in Al-Akhbar reads, “International media emphasizes blood, fraudulent, shame, and money are the characteristics of Egyptian elections.”
According to the report, American daily The New York Times insisted that the 2010 parliamentary elections demonstrate Egypt's reluctance to reform politically. The 2005 elections, according to American publication, witnessed the same acts of violent intimidation and vote rigging.
In the same report, American TV network CNN is cited as describing the polls as the “elections of death and violence” due to blatant acts of bullying which resulted in the death of several citizens, who fell victim to the bloody clashes between the supporters of ruling and oppositions parties.
Al-Wafd also brings attention to an announcement made by the American organization Human Rights Watch: “Egyptians are stripped of the right to participate in free elections.”
The organization writes that the Egyptian government promised to permit civil society organizations to monitor the electoral process in place of international observers. But unfortunately the exclusion of opposition member voting station delegates and observers highlights the lack of transparency in the poll.
In related developments, independent daily Al-Shorouk reports that HEC head Sayed Omar referred several complaints about elections fraud to public prosecutor Abdel Magid Mahmoud, demanding an investigation into violations committed during Sunday’s election.
According to the preliminary results, the NDP’s women candidates prevailed in the female quota division, winning 42 out of 64 seats, while the Brotherhood and the Nasserist parties have come out empty-handed.
The article also states that 444 candidates must compete in the second round, among them are the NDP nominees who will face one another in open districts.
The Wafd Party won seven seats outright and will compete with another seven candidates on 5 December. Twelve Brotherhood members and five Tagammu candidates party will also participate in the run-off.
Egypt's papers:
Al-Ahram: Daily, state-run, largest distribution in Egypt
Al-Akhbar: Daily, state-run, second to Al-Ahram in institutional size
Al-Gomhorriya: Daily, state-run
Rose el-Youssef: Daily, state-run, close to the National Democratic Party's Policies Secretariat
Al-Dostour: Daily, privately owned
Al-Shorouk: Daily, privately owned
Al-Wafd: Daily, published by the liberal Wafd Party
Al-Arabi: Weekly, published by the Arab Nasserist party
Youm7: Weekly, privately owned
Sawt el-Umma: Weekly, privately owned
