NEA closes candidacy of 2018 presidential election

CAIRO - 29 January 2018: President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi and Chairperson of El-Ghad Party Mousa Mostafa Mousa are the only announced potential candidates for the presidential election due in March.


An hour before the deadline of submitting the candidacy application to the National Election Authority (NEA) on Monday, Moussa’s lawyer submitted his application to stand for the presidential election, while President Sisi’s nomination application was submitted on Wednesday to run for a second term.



It is scheduled that the NEA will publish the final list of the candidates on Wednesday, as per the Authority's timeline, which is stated on January 8. About sixty million people are eligible to cast their ballots in the 2018 presidential election, which will start on March 26.


Five persons, who announced their intentions to contest the presidency, have dropped out. Former prime minister Ahmed Shafiq, Lawyer Khaled Ali, and Parliamentarian Mortada Mansour, and nephew of assassinated Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat, Esmat al-Sadat withdrew from the race; former military chief of staff Sami Anan, who is still under the military call-up service, is being held by the military over accusations of “forgery” as he announced his running for president without having a permission from the Armed Forces.



The final results of the first round will be announced on April 2. If no candidate obtains the majority vote, a three-day run-off round will commence in Egypt on April 24, and on April 19 abroad.