Initial indicators from the Egyptian presidential election results show President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi winning a new term by a significant margin over his nearest rivals, securing over 80% of the votes, according to local media. Semi-official sources indicate that preliminary counting results from the general committees display Sisi leading the race by a large margin, while there is a fluctuating competition between candidates Farid Zahraan and Hazem Omar for second place.
#### Notable Lead for Sisi
Results announced by general committees indicated that Sisi has a comfortable lead over his nearest competitors, with his vote share ranging between 85% and 95%, based on the counting results. A responsible source from the National Election Authority stated that "the general electoral committees, overseeing the polling sub-committees where voters cast their votes, have completed their numerical tally and the collection of votes recorded in the reports from the sub-committees." The same source told the Middle East News Agency that the authority is undertaking its role to review all election process documents and vote counting reports, preparing to announce the official final results next Monday.
Sisi is competing against three candidates: Farid Zahraan, head of the Egyptian Democratic Social Party; Abd al-Sand Yamama, head of the Wafd Party; and Hazem Omar, head of the Republican People’s Party.
#### National Election Authority: Unprecedented Turnout
The presidential election witnessed an unprecedented turnout, as confirmed by the National Election Authority, mentioning that the electoral process proceeded satisfactorily and smoothly. The authority added that the participation rate reached 45% of eligible voters, a level not seen in any previous electoral events or referendums. Approximately 67 million voters are eligible to vote, according to the voter database, in an election supervised by around 15,000 judges from various judicial bodies overseeing 11,631 polling sub-committees.
It is noteworthy that the Egyptian presidential elections began on December 10 and lasted for three days, concluding yesterday, Tuesday.
#### Announcement Date for Presidential Election Results
According to the presidential election law, the results are scheduled to be announced on Monday, December 18, as stated in Article 38 of the presidential election law, which stipulates that the Presidential Election Committee is the sole body responsible for announcing the overall results within five days following the arrival of all reports from the general committees, with results published in the official gazette.
According to Article 37 of the presidential election law, the general committee compiles the tally prepared by the sub-committees to collect votes and document the total received by each candidate from all committees in a report composed of three copies signed by the committee chairperson and secretary. After the committee concludes its work, it will announce the tally of valid votes obtained by each candidate.
All preceding procedures, according to the same article, must take place in the presence of any candidates or their representatives, as well as accredited media representatives from the Presidential Election Committee, with the general committee chairperson providing a stamped copy of the mentioned tally to any requesting candidates, their representatives, or delegates, while the Presidential Election Committee determines the rules for preserving these copies and election documents.
