President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has said that the low turnout recorded during the first phase of parliamentary elections, which ended on October 28, was not indicative of popular discontent with his rule.
Speaking to the BBC ahead of a visit to London for talks with PM David Cameron, Sisi maintained that the low turnout by voters during the polls “was neither unexpected nor evidence of growing disillusionment with my rule”.
The president added, "what has been achieved in our experience may not be the best, but we are going ahead with it and we will make further progress.”
The High Elections Commision has put turnout during the first round of the elections at 26.5 percent and 21 percent at runoffs.
The second round of elections kick off November 22, with runoffs slated to end on December 2.
The 569-seat House of Representatives' polls are the last step in the political roadmap Sisi announced after overthrowing former president Mohamed Morsi in 2013 following mass protests.
