Egyptians to vote in Senate election dominated by pro-gov't bloc

Egyptians will cast their votes this week in Senate elections widely viewed as a formality, with the ballot dominated by a pro-government coalition and lacking substantial opposition.

The two-day vote beginning on Monday will elect 200 of the 300 seats in the upper chamber of parliament, with the remaining third appointed directly by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Egypt's former army chief who came to power after ousting Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013.

Among the elected seats, 100 are reserved for individual candidates, while the other 100 are decided in a so-called closed list vote, in which the winning political parties choose the lawmakers who fill the seats.

The run-up to the vote has seen election posters scattered around Cairo advertising the "National List for Egypt", a pro-government coalition that is effectively running unopposed in the party list vote.

The 13-member coalition is led by the pro-Sisi Mostaqbal Watan (Nation's Future) party -- which  currently dominates parliament -- and the National Front party, led by former minister Essam al-Gazzar.

Gazzar's newly formed party brings together former government officials and has the financial backing of business tycoon Ibrahim al-Organi, a close ally to Sisi.

In the absence of robust campaigning, Egyptians received brief text messages reminding them of the vote from the Homat al-Watan (Defenders of the Nation) party, also part of the coalition.

The National List grouping also includes historical opposition parties, such as the liberal Wafd and leftist Tagamoa, which are now aligned with the ruling establishment.

More than 400 candidates are competing for the 100 seats reserved for individuals, but with many of them likewise affiliated with National List parties, genuine opposition remains limited.

Two years after the 2011 uprising that toppled longtime leader Hosni Mubarak, Egypt adopted a unicameral parliamentary system and dissolved the Senate, only to reinstate it six years later in 2019.

While its opinions are technically consultative, lawmakers say they are typically followed by the more influential lower house of parliament, where genuine opposition is also limited.

Results from the first round of the Senate vote are expected on August 12, with a second round scheduled for later in the month.

The chamber will sit for five years, with a quota of at least 10 percent of its seats reserved for women.

Parliamentary elections for the lower chamber are due to follow in November.

Sisi's administration, long maligned for its rights record, launched a national dialogue in 2022 in an apparent overture to the country's decimated opposition.

But the years since have seen a widening crackdown on dissent, according to rights groups, who estimate tens of thousands of political prisoners remain behind bars.