After two tiresome election phases, Egypt’s beleaguered new constitution passed with a 64 per cent approval rate. Only three out of twenty seven governorates resulted in a majority of ‘No’ vote. Upper Egypt governorates witnessed the highest approval rates, with ‘yes’ winning by comfortable margins across the board.
The toughest challenge to the new constitution was in the capital city, the largest in Egypt, rejecting the constitution with 57 per cent. The vote in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria came as a surprise to many with ‘yes’ winning by 55.6 per cent.
Fayoum governorate, 45 minutes south of Cairo, voted an impressive 89 per cent in favor of the bill. Marsa Matrouh, an established Islamist stronghold, recorded just above six thousand ‘no’ votes.
Turnover fell to some 32 per cent, well below the 49 per cent seen in the Presidential runoffs back in June. No governorate saw a turnover above 40 per cent and Upper Egypt’s Beni Suef witnessed the highest participation rate at 37.82 per cent.
Ahram
