CAIRO, 21 October 2005 — A total of 5,488 Egyptians registered their candidacy for the November parliamentary elections, the electoral commission announced yesterday.
They will be vying for the 444 parliament seats up for grabs in the polls, which will kick off on Nov. 9 and end a month later, with Egypt’s provinces divided into three groups voting in successive phases.
A final list of candidates is expected to be announced next week after electoral officials eliminate applicants who do not meet registration requirements.
Each of Egypt’s 222 constituencies has two seats, but only President Hosni Mubarak’s ruling National Democratic Party fielded the maximum 444 candidates.
The United National Front for Change (UNFC) — a new list which includes the Kefaya movement and several other parliamentary opposition parties — fielded 395.
The NDP currently controls 402 out of the 454 seats in parliament, where 10 MPs are appointed directly by the president.
