Sisi on Course for Big Election Win, Early Estimates Say

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is on course for a landslide election victory according to early estimates after polls closed in a three-day election, with some private television stations reporting that he could achieve a vote share of 95 percent or more.

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“The voice of the Egyptian masses will undoubtedly bear witness to the fact that our nation’s will imposes itself with a force that knows no weakness,” Sisi said on Twitter, although some voters said they had received payments and other inducements to cast their ballots according to Reuters. “The scenes of Egyptians at polling stations will remain a point of pride and honor for me and undoubted proof of the greatness of our nation that has offered the blood of its greatest sons so that we can together cross into the future.”

Asked for comment, the presidential spokesman said this was not a matter for the presidency to address and referred Reuters to the National Election Commission and spokespeople for the presidential campaigns.

Hours before polls closed, the electoral commission issued a last-minute call for people to vote. Voting was extended by one hour, the state news agency MENA reported.

Lasheen Ibrahim, head of the national election commission, told Egyptians: “Declare to the world that Egypt always makes history, for you are the Pharaohs, the makers of the civilization that amazed the world.”

Sisi is running almost unchallenged after other candidates were either arrested or intimidated, with his only challenger being Moussa Mostafa Moussa. Sisi said he wanted more opponents to stand, and insisted he had nothing to do with opposition candidates pulling out. The election commission had pledged the vote would be free and fair.

On the first two days of voting, turnout was about 21 percent, according to two sources monitoring the election.

No overall figure for Wednesday was immediately available. A Western diplomat said that late on Tuesday, turnout was between 15 and 20 percent, with around 30 percent in some centers on Wednesday.

In the city of Alexandria, an election observer said three polling stations had turnouts of 26.6, 32, and 33.75 percent by late Wednesday afternoon.

At the last election in 2014, turnout was 47 percent, although Sisi won 97 percent of the overall vote. Official results are due on April 2.