Egypt’s National Elections Authority (NEA) on Tuesday, November 18, 2025, nullified parliamentary votes in more than a quarter of the constituencies from the first round of national elections, marking one of the most significant electoral disruptions in recent years.
The first round of voting, held last week, was part of a two-phase process to elect the new parliament during President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s third and final constitutional term. The electoral system combines individual candidate races with closed party lists, where voters select from pre-approved rosters of candidates.
In a televised press briefing, NEA Chairman Hazem Badawi announced that results from 19 of the 70 constituencies in which individual candidates competed had been annulled due to confirmed “violations” and credible appeals.
According to Badawi, irregularities included campaign advertisements placed illegally near polling stations, failure to provide vote tallies to candidates or their representatives, and discrepancies in committee vote counts.
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, speaking on Monday, had urged the NEA to “scrutinize all incidents and appeals” and to take all necessary measures, including reruns, to safeguard electoral transparency and ensure that the new parliament reflects “the genuine will of Egyptians.”
Badawi further announced that the National List for Egypt, a coalition dominated by pro-government parties, had surpassed the 5% voter threshold required to secure all available list-based seats in the first round. The bloc was the only qualifying list this year, effectively guaranteeing its candidates parliamentary representation.
The NEA reported that voter turnout in the first round reached approximately 23%, with the second and final phase of voting scheduled for next week.
The annulments come amid growing scrutiny of Egypt’s electoral integrity, as observers question the level of competition and political pluralism under Sisi’s administration.
