More than 1000 women will be competing over National Democratic Party (NDP) nominations for 64 seats allocated under the recently-adopted women’s quota system, reports state-run Al-Ahram. Internal elections will be held on 27 October.
Not only is the competition fierce in several districts, but women have used their participation to challenge tradition. In the Red Sea Governorate, for instance, candidates have challenged Bedouin social mores by posting their photographs on the streets, according to privately-owned Al-Dostour.
In Upper Egypt’s Qena Governorate, which has had no female representatives since Sadiya Hassan in the 1970s, nine NDP and 16 opposition candidates are competing, according to state-run Al-Gomhorriya. Interestingly, husbands are playing a supporting role in their wives’ campaigns. In Al-Sharqiya Governorate, some candidates have taken their husbands and children to campaign rallies (which can last into the late hours of the night) to deter rumors and ensure their safety on their way home.
The most hotly-contested districts include “al-Markaz al-Awwal” in Sharqiya, where 131 women are competing over NDP candidacy for the district’s two seats, according to Al-Gomhorriya. Sixty-five candidates are competing for the professionals’ seat. Several candidates are entering the electoral race for the first time, including Hala Wahba, member of the National Council for Women, and Ahlam Hana, member of the governorate’s municipal council.
But the race over NDP candidacy for women’s quota seats is also plagued by irregularities as candidates are relying on connections with powerful NDP officials to secure nominations, according to a report in Al-Wafd paper, published by the liberal Wafd Party. In Alexandria, observers described competition over NDP candidacy for the professionals seats as the “primo,” in reference to first-class train tickets. Rather than competing for support among NDP members, female candidates seeking nomination for the professionals seats have focused on building relations with NDP leadership at the highest levels.
According to the coverage, NDP candidates in Alexandria observed that NDP Secretary of Organization Ahmed Ezz offered support for Rania Sherif Bayoumi–NDP women’s secretary in Alexandria, who is competing for a professionals seat–during his meeting with them. In addition, Ibtihal Al-Bastawissi presented her papers at the very last minute, indicating that she is backed by NDP leadership.
The struggle for the “terzo”–third-class train tickets–refers to competition over candidacy for the workers seats. According to Al-Wafd’s coverage, candidates for workers seats have spent most of their time defending their status as “workers” rather than coming up with solutions to workers’ problems, making the competition rather less heated than competition for professionals seats. Notably, 20 women are competing for the workers seat in Qena.
The Muslim Brotherhood meanwhile plans to nominate some of its cadres’ wives to compete for women’s quota seats, according to a front-page report in Al-Dostour. Candidates include Imam Ith (the wife of Mahmoud Ezzat–the deputy supreme guide), the wives of Issam al-Eryan (member of the Guidance Bureau), and Khayrat al-Shatir (currently imprisoned).
In other news, vote-buying continues in NDP internal elections. Privately-owned Al-Shorouk writes that votes ranged between LE50 and LE100 in Cairo’s districts of Bassatin and Dar al-Sallam. Candidates also distributed bags containing food and bottled water.
Al-Shorouk also reports that a man holding NDP membership cards entered one of the election areas shouting: “I have votes…How much will you buy my votes for?”
In related news, Al-Dostour reports that some NDP candidates in Bassatin, namely Tarek al-Alfi and Akmal Kurtam, are not residents of the district but have instead been “parachuted” in. In Bolaq al-Dakrur, NDP candidate for the professionals seat Abdul Ghani Al Gamal has continued to hold consumer rallies, which he first started by selling tomatoes at a discounted price, according to Al-Ahram. This time, al-Gamal sold almost 12 tons of sugar for the reduced price of LE2.5/kg. Notably, however, residents asked Abdul Ghani and his supporters for a repeat of the discounted tomatoes.
