Egyptian authorities have warned people to vote or risk paying a fine, as they look to boost turnout in a lackluster election that is virtually guaranteed to hand President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi a second four-year term.

El-Sissi faces only a token opponent in the vote, which resembles the referendums held by autocrats for decades before the Arab Spring uprisings of 2011 briefly raised hopes of democratic change.

Serious challengers were forced out or arrested, including former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq, who showed up late Tuesday at a polling center to cast his ballot. It was his first public appearance since he announced his intention to run in December from the United Arab Emirates, where he had gone after narrowly losing the 2012 election to the Islamist Mohammed Morsi.

The UAE deported Shafiq after the announcement, and he was met at the Cairo airport by unidentified security men who escorted him to a hotel on the city's outskirts. He decided against running soon thereafter. On Tuesday, he told reporters that voting was a "national duty," without elaborating.

The government is hoping for high turnout to lend the election legitimacy, and has staggered the voting over three days, with polls closing Wednesday at 9 p.m. (1900 GMT). Official results are expected on April 2.

The National Election Authority said in a statement Wednesday it will enforce a law penalizing boycotters with a fine of around $30. Similar warnings have been issued in previous elections, with no real enforcement.

Nearly 60 million Egyptians are eligible to vote at some 13,700 polling centers.

Turnout appears to be low so far, with short lines in front of some polling stations and others virtually empty. El-Sissi's only opponent is Moussa Mustafa Moussa, a little-known politician who supports the president and made no effort to campaign against him.

Local media, which are dominated by pro-government commentators, have urged people to come out and vote, saying they have a national obligation to resist foreign plots aimed at sowing discord. Groups of loyalists can be seen clapping and dancing in front of some polling stations, as patriotic music plays from loudspeakers.

Outside a polling station in Cairo's Manial neighborhood, about two dozen voters, mainly older people, lined up in front of the gates shortly before polls opened.

"I am here because I need security and stability," said 44-year-old government employee Amina el-Sayed. She said her manager gave her and her colleagues a day off to vote.

Sayada Fathi, a 62-year-old voter, said she wasn't bothered by the lack of competition.

"Our beloved el-Sissi will win easily," she said.

In Cairo's heavily populated, working-class district of Shubra, a trickle of voters, mainly older women, could be seen outside two polling stations.

Judges supervising the polling centers said that out of 7,800 registered voters, some 3,000 cast ballots, or around 38 percent.

In a nearby polling center the turnout reached 34 percent, according to figures provided by the judges.

El-Sissi won 96.9 percent of the vote in 2014, with official turnout of more than 47 percent.

Saadia Ali, a housewife and mother of five, said she came because she hopes things get better. "Just tell them that our houses are collapsing and on my street they are not doing anything to fix it.

"Why didn't they have more than one candidate?" she asked, after casting her vote.

At Saleh Hamad school in Shubra, only 3,500 of 12,000 eligible voters cast their votes by midday, or about 29 percent, polling judges there said. Christians make up a large portion of voters in the district. They constitute around 10 percent of Egypt's predominantly Muslim population.

Father Marcus Ibrahim, a Coptic Christian priest who brought his son with him, said the church told worshippers to go and vote without supporting a certain candidate.

"This is the only way for change. It's slow but it will happen as long as we keep participating. I brought my son and told him to sign the ballot and drop it in the box so he gets used to it.

"If there were more than one strong candidate, it would have been different for sure," he said. </s> Voters in Egypt have less than an hour to cast their ballots in the presidential election or risk a fine. It is the third and final day of voting, but authorities are concerned that turnout has been low, even though people are being offered money to cast their ballots. </s> Egyptian authorities have warned people to vote or risk paying a fine as they look to boost turnout in a lacklustre election that is virtually guaranteed to hand President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi a second four-year term.

Egyptian authorities have warned people to vote or risk paying a fine as they look to boost turnout in a lacklustre election that is virtually guaranteed to hand President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi a second four-year term.

All eyes on turnout as Egypt votes on final day of election

Serious challengers were forced out or arrested, including former prime minister Ahmed Shafiq, who showed up late on Tuesday at a polling centre to cast his ballot. It was his first public appearance since he announced his intention to run in December from the United Arab Emirates, where he had gone after narrowly losing the 2012 election to the Islamist Mohammed Morsi.

The UAE deported Mr Shafiq after the announcement, and he was met at the Cairo airport by unidentified security men who escorted him to a hotel on the city’s outskirts. He decided against running soon thereafter.

On Tuesday, he told reporters that voting was a “national duty”, without elaborating. The government is hoping for a high turnout to lend the election legitimacy, and has staggered the voting over three days, with polls closing on Wednesday at 9pm (1900 GMT).

Official results are expected on April 2. The state-news agency MENA quoted unnamed election officials as saying that the law penalises boycotters, with a fine of around 30 US dollars (£21).

Turnout appears to be low so far, with short lines in front of some polling stations and others virtually empty. Mr El-Sissi’s only opponent is Moussa Mustafa Moussa, a little-known politician who supports the president and made no effort to campaign against him.

Local media, which are dominated by pro-government commentators, have urged people to come out and vote, saying they have a national obligation to resist foreign plots aimed at sowing discord. Groups of loyalists can be seen clapping and dancing in front of some polling stations, as patriotic music plays from loudspeakers.

A soldier stands guard in front of a polling station during the second day of the presidential in Cairo (Amr Nabil/AP) Outside a polling station in Cairo’s Manial neighbourhood, about two dozen voters, mainly older people, lined up in front of the gates shortly before polls opened. “I am here because I need security and stability,” said 44-year-old government employee Amina el-Sayed. She said her manager gave her and her colleagues a day off to vote. Sayada Fathi, a 62-year-old voter, said she was not bothered by the lack of competition. </s> CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian authorities pressed for a high turnout on Tuesday on the second day of a presidential election expected to give President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi a sweeping victory in the absence of real competition, in a contest dismissed by critics as sham.

A voter's finger is marked with ink inside a polling station during the second day of the presidential election in Cairo, Egypt, March 27, 2018. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh

In an effort to enthuse voters, the state news agency reminded Egyptians that voting is mandatory and those who do not vote, face a fine of up to 500 pounds ($28) - a sanction that in previous elections has not been enforced rigorously.

“I expect turnout and participation to increase in the coming hours, and I call on Egyptians to go out and vote,” said Prime Minister Sherif Ismail.

Sisi says he is seeking a second term to repair the economic damage from years of political turmoil, defeat Islamist insurgents and revive Egypt’s role as a pre-eminent Arab power.

His only opponent is an obscure politician loyal to Sisi. More serious challengers were forced to step down and several opposition politicians called for a boycott of the vote, saying repression had removed credible challengers.

But authorities hope that over three days they can mobilize a strong turnout. The president still has many admirers, although austerity measures in recent years and a fierce crackdown on Islamists, secularists and liberals have reduced that support.

Brigadier General Ali Hareedi, head of the central elections operations room, said the first day of voting produced a high turnout “which proves the Egyptian people’s awareness”. He gave no figure.

Pro-Sisi media said voters were flocking to ballot centers.

“Millions of voters gather in front of polling stations... and rejoice in every square,” ran a headline in the newspaper Al-Akhbar.

Two sources monitoring the election, including one from the National Election Commission, said about 13.5 percent of 59 million eligible voters had cast ballots on Monday.

At a polling station in Fayoum, a bastion of Islamist support 100 km (60 miles) south of Cairo, an election official put the turnout at 25 percent, only to be quickly corrected by an army officer who said “over 50”.

One 55-year-old civil servant said she had voted partly because her employer had encouraged her to, but also because “there’s security now, it’s not like Iraq, Syria or Yemen”.

Her husband did not vote though. “He’s not happy about the economy. We hope it will improve, but God only knows. Not everyone is voting because not everyone is convinced (by Sisi).”

SISI VOTERS SEEK STABILITY

Sisi, who in 2013 led the military overthrow of Egypt’s first democratically elected president, Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood, took 47 percent of the vote when he was first elected, in 2014.

The political risk consultancy Eurasia Group said if the government failed to mobilize voters and publicly admitted to a turnout of below 40 percent, “Sisi would come out of the elections weakened and more vulnerable to domestic pressure”.

That seems unlikely, the consultants said, but Reuters reporters found the pace of voting leisurely.

The election aroused little interest in Cairo’s working-class districts. And at three voting centers in middle-class Dokki, no queues formed and voters were coming in at about one every five minutes.

Most people voting for Sisi defended his economic policies and his suppression of political plurality. The blamed their woes on the Brotherhood, saying it had created instability and high inflation that had scared off tourists and investment.

Saeed Mohieddine, 67, a retired employee, said: “I voted for Sisi for the things he has achieved. He crushed terrorism, built new cities and started new development projects.

“Inflation started six years ago during the Brotherhood days; Sisi didn’t find anybody to stand against him,” he said. “Not everything can be done at once. The country needs to get going.”

Ahmed Adel, a 50-year-old stockbroker, said he had voted for Sisi because he had brought stability and security.

“I can now walk in the street feeling secure,” he said.

HESITANT

Only two people at polling centers hesitated to say who they had voted for as security men kept a close watch.

The election commission has said the vote will be free and fair, and Sisi said he would have liked more candidates to run.

Sisi has said he will not seek a third term, but critics expect him to scrap a two-presidential term limit.

At a polling station in the Nile city of Beni Suef south of Cairo, a judge said 510 voters out of the registered 3,592 had cast their votes by 10 a.m. (4 a.m. ET) on Tuesday.

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Faten Othman, 40, a teacher, said she had spoiled her vote. “Nothing good has been done,” she said. “(There are) high prices ... and whoever speaks goes to jail.”

But a Muslim cleric in Beni Suef, Mohammed Abdul Sattar, said people should support Sisi. “Participating in the elections is a religious duty and a duty imposed on every man - whoever doesn’t vote or participate is a sinner,” he said.

In Fayoum, an official at a polling station said that, by mid-afternoon on the second day, nearly 1,500 out of more than 7,000 registered voters had cast their ballots. </s> Egypt will extend voting in the final day of a presidential election by one hour to 10 p.m. (2000 GMT) on Wednesday, state news agency MENA quoted the election commission as saying.



Polls have been open every day since Monday in a vote which is set to hand President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi a landslide win for a second term. </s> Egyptian authorities have warned people to vote or risk paying a fine as they look to boost turnout in a lacklustre election that is virtually guaranteed to hand President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi a second four-year term.

Mr El-Sissi faces only a token opponent in the vote, which resembles the referenda held by autocrats for decades before the Arab Spring uprisings of 2011 briefly raised hopes of democratic change.

Serious challengers were forced out or arrested, including former prime minister Ahmed Shafiq, who showed up late on Tuesday at a polling centre to cast his ballot.

It was his first public appearance since he announced his intention to run in December from the United Arab Emirates, where he had gone after narrowly losing the 2012 election to the Islamist Mohammed Morsi.

The UAE deported Mr Shafiq after the announcement, and he was met at the Cairo airport by unidentified security men who escorted him to a hotel on the city’s outskirts.

He decided against running soon thereafter.

On Tuesday, he told reporters that voting was a “national duty”, without elaborating.

The government is hoping for a high turnout to lend the election legitimacy, and has staggered the voting over three days, with polls closing on Wednesday at 9pm (1900 GMT).

Official results are expected on April 2.

The state-news agency MENA quoted unnamed election officials as saying that the law penalises boycotters, with a fine of around 30 US dollars (£21).

Similar warnings have been issued in previous elections, with no real enforcement.

Nearly 60 million Egyptians are eligible to vote at some 13,700 polling centres.

Turnout appears to be low so far, with short lines in front of some polling stations and others virtually empty.

Mr El-Sissi’s only opponent is Moussa Mustafa Moussa, a little-known politician who supports the president and made no effort to campaign against him.

Local media, which are dominated by pro-government commentators, have urged people to come out and vote, saying they have a national obligation to resist foreign plots aimed at sowing discord.

Groups of loyalists can be seen clapping and dancing in front of some polling stations, as patriotic music plays from loudspeakers.

Outside a polling station in Cairo’s Manial neighbourhood, about two dozen voters, mainly older people, lined up in front of the gates shortly before polls opened.

“I am here because I need security and stability,” said 44-year-old government employee Amina el-Sayed. She said her manager gave her and her colleagues a day off to vote.

Sayada Fathi, a 62-year-old voter, said she was not bothered by the lack of competition.

“Our beloved el-Sissi will win easily,” she said. </s> Serious challengers were forced out or arrested, including former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq, who showed up late Tuesday at a polling centre to cast his ballot. It was his first public appearance since he announced his intention to run in December from the United Arab Emirates, where he had gone after narrowly losing the 2012 election to the Islamist Mohammed Morsi.

El-Sissi faces only a token opponent in the vote, which resembles the referendums held by autocrats for decades before the Arab Spring uprisings of 2011 briefly raised hopes of democratic change.

CAIRO—Egyptian election authorities have warned people to vote or risk paying a fine, as they look to boost turnout in a lacklustre election that is virtually guaranteed to hand President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi a second four-year term.

The government is hoping for high turnout to lend the election legitimacy, and has staggered the voting over three days, with polls closing Wednesday at 9 p.m.. Official results are expected on April 2.

The UAE deported Shafiq after the announcement, and he was met at the Cairo airport by unidentified security men who escorted him to a hotel on the city’s outskirts. He decided against running soon thereafter. On Tuesday, he told reporters that voting was a “national duty,” without elaborating.

The National Election Authority said in a statement Wednesday it will enforce a law penalizing boycotters with a fine of around $30 (U.S.). Similar warnings have been issued in previous elections, with no real enforcement.

Nearly 60 million Egyptians are eligible to vote at some 13,700 polling centres. El-Sissi won 96.9 per cent of the vote in 2014, with an official turnout of more than 47 per cent. In the 2012 election, which witnessed heightened competition between Islamists and opponents, turnout reached 52 per cent.

In the polling centres this year, turnout appeared low over the first two days of voting then started to gain momentum by midday Wednesday, with short lines in front of some polling stations. El-Sissi’s only opponent is Moussa Mustafa Moussa, a little-known politician who supports the president and made no effort to campaign against him.

Mahmoud el-Sherif, the spokesperson of the election commission, said Wednesday at a press conference that the highest turnout was in Cairo, the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, and in northern Sinai, the epicenter of an insurgency by Islamic militants.

In Cairo’s heavily populated, middle-class district of Shubra, a trickle of voters, mainly older women, could be seen outside two polling stations. Judges supervising the polling centres said that of 7,800 registered voters, some 3,000 cast ballots, or around 38 per cent. In a nearby polling centre the turnout reached 34 per cent, according to figures provided by the judges.

Saadia Ali, a housewife and mother of five, said she came because she hopes things get better. “Just tell them that our houses are collapsing and on my street they are not doing anything to fix it,” she said.

Some el-Sissi supporters are suggesting that he should consider amending the constitution to remain president for life.

Ashraf Ahmed, a 50-year-old ceramic sculptor, said while smoking shisha in a cafe: “I have only one wish and if accomplished, I will be very happy. I wish that the next step is to change the constitution so he can run for a third, forth, fifth and forever.”

El-Sissi has said that he is not in favour of amending constitutional provisions barring the president from staying in office beyond two, four-year-terms. Several pro-government lawmakers and media figures promoted the proposed amendments to allow el-Sissi to stay in office beyond eight years.

At Saleh Hamad school in Shubra, at least 3,500 of 12,000 eligible voters cast their votes by midday, or about 29 per cent, polling judges there said. Christians, strong supporters of el-Sissi for challenging Islamists, make up a large portion of voters in the district. They constitute around 10 per cent of Egypt’s predominantly Muslim population.

Father Marcus Ibrahim, a Coptic Christian priest who brought his son with him, said the church told worshippers to go and vote without supporting a certain candidate.

“This is the only way for change. It’s slow but it will happen as long as we keep participating. I brought my son and told him to sign the ballot and drop it in the box so he gets used to it.

Local media, which are dominated by pro-government commentators, have urged people to come out and vote, saying they have a national obligation to resist foreign plots aimed at sowing discord. Groups of loyalists can be seen clapping and dancing in front of some polling stations, as patriotic music plays from loudspeakers.

Outside a polling station in Cairo’s Manial neighbourhood, about two dozen voters, mainly older people, lined up in front of the gates shortly before polls opened.

Sayada Fathi, a 62-year-old voter, said she wasn’t bothered by the lack of competition.

“Our beloved el-Sissi will win easily,” she said. </s> Egypt's National Elections Authority (NEA) has declared Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi the winner of the nation's 2018 presidential elections, securing a second four-year term after winning 21,835,378 votes or 97.08 percent of valid votes.

At a press conference in Cairo on Monday, the NEA said that 24,254,152 citizens voted in the elections at home and abroad, out of near 59 million eligible voters, representing a turnout of 41.5 percent.

The NEA said that Ghad Party chief Moussa Mostafa Moussa, El-Sisi's sole opponent in the elections, won 656,534 votes or 2.92 percent of total votes

The authority said the number of invalid ballots was 1,762,231 or 7.27 percent of total votes cast.

Egyptians voted in 13,706 polling stations across all 27 governorates, said the NEA, with more than 18,808 judges and 124,000 administrative staff supervising the process.

Voting in Egypt took place between 26 and 28 March, with Egyptians abroad voting from 16 to 18 March, at Egyptian embassies and consulates in more than 120 countries.

'No complaints'

The NEA said it had not received any complaints about the elections process from the campaigns of either candidate, with no significant violations reported.

At total of 54 local and international organizations, including African Union observers and the Arab League, observed the process, reporting no violations of procedure, said the NEA.

On the third day of the vote at home, the authority announced it would be enforcing a fine of EGP 500 on those who failed to vote in the elections, as per the 2014 presidential elections law.

More than 18,000 judges and around 120,000 administrative staff supervised the vote.

The vote was secured by tens of thousands of police and army personnel.

Four more years

This is the second presidential term for Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, now aged 64, who has held office since winning elections in 2014.

He became the sixth president of the republic in May of that year after winning 23.78 million votes (96.91 percent) against his Nasserist opponent Hamdeen Sabahi.

Egypt's 2014 constitution limits presidents to two four-year terms.

El-Sisi is due to be sworn in at the House of Representatives in Cairo in June, as per constitutional guidelines, according to the Egyptian parliament's spokeperson.

In 2014, El-Sisi was sworn in at the Supreme Constitutional Court due to the absence of an elected parliament at the time.

A life of service

The father of four, El-Sisi graduated from Egypt's Military Academy in 1977 as an officer in the Egyptian army.

His previous posts include a spell as a defence attaché in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He also took up command positions in the Sinai Peninsula and Egypt's second-biggest city, Alexandria.

El-Sisi was a fellow at the US Army War College in Pennsylvania in 2005-2006.

He was appointed as the head of Egyptian military intelligence in January 2010.

A year later, he became the youngest member of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), which ruled the country following the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak in the January 2011 uprising.

In August 2012, then-President Mohamed Morsi appointed El-Sisi as minister of defence.

In July 2013, the Islamist president Morsi was ousted from power following mass protests against his rule that were backed by the army and various Egyptian political forces.

In March 2014, El-Sisi resigned from his post as minister of defense and ran for presidency.

El-Sisi is married to his maternal cousin Entissar Amer.

Short link: </s> CAIRO -- Egyptians began voting Monday in an election that virtually guaranteed another term for President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, who faced only a token opponent in balloting that resembled the referendums held by autocrats for decades before the Arab Spring briefly raised hopes of democratic change.

El-Sissi's only challenger was Moussa Mustafa Moussa, a little-known politician who joined the race at the last minute to spare the government a one-candidate election after several hopefuls were forced out or arrested.

Authorities hope enough of Egypt's nearly 60 million eligible voters will participate in the three-day election to give it legitimacy. Local media, which are dominated by pro-government commentators, have portrayed voting as a national obligation and the only way to prevent foreigners from sowing instability.

There were only modest lines at most polling places Monday, and some were empty for most of the day.

Officials overseeing four polling centers in the greater Cairo area said turnout hovered around a lowly 7 percent by 6 p.m. there, three hours before their scheduled close for the day. They said they expected a dramatic increase on the final day Wednesday.

El-Sissi, a general who led the 2013 military overthrow of Egypt's first freely elected president, the Islamist Mohammed Morsi, voted at a school in the Cairo suburb of Heliopolis as soon as the polls opened at 9 a.m. He made no comment before heading for a meeting with his campaign team.

Moussa, who supported el-Sissi until he joined the race, made no effort to mount a challenge, and the president never mentioned him once in public.

Replying to a reporter's question about his chances of winning, Moussa said: "It all depends on your prayers and your votes."

Some potential candidates might have attracted a sizable protest vote, but they were all either arrested or intimidated into withdrawing, making this the least competitive election since the 2011 uprising that ousted Hosni Mubarak.

The vote came amid the harshest crackdown on dissent in Egypt's modern history, with thousands of Islamists as well as several prominent secular activists in jail. Unauthorized protests are banned, most critical voices in the Egyptian media have been silenced, and hundreds of websites, including those of independent media and rights groups, have been blocked.

"I am not participating in this show because we all know who will win the vote," said Ahmed, a gas station attendant in Cairo's twin city of Giza.

"Nobody dares to speak up anymore, and if I go out and protest, I will either be killed with a bullet or thrown in jail," said the 30-year-old, who asked that only his first name be used because of those fears.

The national election commission reported a large turnout in Cairo, Alexandria and northern Sinai, the epicenter of an insurgency led by the Islamic State group, but gave no figures. Pro-government media dubbed the vote a "democratic feast."

Retired engineer Mohammed Ibrahim Ali patiently waited for the polls to open in Cairo's bustling Sayda Zeinab neighborhood, home to a famous Islamic shrine.

"Even if there are 1,000 candidates, we will vote for el-Sissi," he said, struggling to be heard over patriotic songs blaring from speakers. "He is the one who makes life great here."

Ahmed Abdel-Atti, a 58-year-old doorman in the same neighborhood, voiced skepticism.

"Do you see any other candidates?" he asked.

Many Egyptians had welcomed the military overthrow of Morsi, whose divisive rule had brought mass protests, and the subsequent crackdown on the Brotherhood. For a time, el-Sissi enjoyed a wave of popular support, but that aura has faded in the past four years.

In the Sinai Peninsula, the insurgency that gained strength after Morsi's overthrow has only grown more ferocious, with regular attacks on security forces and deadly church bombings.

Meanwhile, the government has enacted a series of economic overhauls, including subsidy cuts and the flotation of the currency. That improved the investment climate and earned Egypt a $12 billion bailout loan from the International Monetary Fund. But the austerity measures sent prices soaring, exacting a heavy toll on ordinary Egyptians.

"I was a wholehearted [el-Sissi] supporter, but not anymore," said a man who recently lost his job in a telecommunications company and now works at a Cairo gas station. "Yes, there are big projects, but he takes from us, the poor, not from them, the rich. We are the people who are living day to day."

He also asked that his full name not be used, fearing trouble from authorities.
On the final day of the election, Egypt's National Election Authority says it will fine abstaining voters.