Islam and Government

EGYPT

Following Egypt’s reign of pharaohs, Egypt was a relatively controlled power, whether that be under Roman, Ottoman or British power. It is only a recent occurrence that Egypt has had the ability to rule itself.

After the revolution of 1952, in which the British-backed King Farouk was removed, Egypt returned to a period of self-rule plagued with dictatorships and corruption. The first true, modern, multi-party election as we would think of it was held in 2005. This election, while it was a step in the right direction, was marred by voter fraud, boycotts, and ballot stuffing. With a voter turnout below 30 percent, the incumbent Hosni Mubarak won with 6.3 million votes or 88 percent of the popular vote.  The elections of 2010 did curb some of the problems presented in the 2005 elections, but it was still seen as a corrupt and potentially rigged election (B.N. Collection 2013).

For the sake of conciseness, we will take a deeper look at the government and elections following the Arab Spring revolution in which Hosni Mubarak was removed from power and the nation was put under military control. Mubarak left office on Feburary 11^th ,2011, and presidential elections were held the coming March and parliamentary elections were slated for the preceding November.

Governmental Structure and Voting Rights

Egypt Voting, by UN Women Arab States, used under .

The Egyptian government is a three tiered system consisting of an Executive, Judicial and Legislative branch. The Egyptian legislative branch is bicameral. It consists of the Shura Council, elected for six-year terms, and the House of Representatives, whose members are elected to serve five-year terms. Voting rights are extended to all men and women of 18 years of age or older. Furthermore, twelve percent of the legislative seats are reserved for women. The president is elected to a six year term with a two term limit. (Bureau 2013).