1926 Egyptian parliamentary election

1926 Egyptian parliamentary election

←  1925 22 May 1926 1929  →

First party Second party   Leader Saad Zaghloul Adly Yakan Pasha Party Wafd Liberal Constitutional Seats won 171 29 Percentage 67.98% 19.03%   Third party Fourth party   Leader Muhammad Hafiz Ramadan Pasha Mohamed Tawfik Naseem Pasha Party National Ittihad Seats won 5 1 Percentage 1.95% 6.22%

Prime Minister before election Ahmed Zeiwar Pasha Independent Subsequent Prime Minister Adly Yakan Pasha Liberal Constitutional

Parliamentary elections were held in Egypt on 22 May 1926. ^[1] The result was a victory for the Wafd Party, which won 171 of the 211 seats. ^{[2] [a]}

The ruling Ittihad Party led by Prime Minister Ahmed Ziwar Pasha and Minister of Finance Yahya Ibrahim Pasha, while clinging to power, was too weak to carry out an effective campaign. It failed to nominate more than 66 candidates, fewer than the seats won by the Wafdists. ^[3]

Background

After the 1925 election, where a Wafdist majority parliament was dissolved by King Fuad in less than half a day, the Liberal Constitutional Party sought rapprochement with the Wafd Party. ^[4] On 14 January 1926 an executive committee representing the National Party, the Wafd and the Liberal Constitutionalists was set up to discuss their response to the King and Ahmed Zeiwar's government. The National Party wanted the return on the 1925 parliament and a boycott of any future election, while the Wafdists and Liberals wanted new elections. However, when new elections were held on 22 May, the committee urged its voters to participate. ^[5] These elections were the first held under newly relaxed financial requirements for voters, significantly increasing voter turnout compared to the previous election. ^[6]

Results

Party		Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	Wafd Party	771,737	67.98	171	+58
	Liberal Constitutional Party	216,025	19.03	29	–11
	Ittihad Party	70,643	6.22	1	–28
	National Party	22,136	1.95	5	–2
	Independents	54,723	4.82	5	–17
Total		1,135,264	100.00	211	0
Total votes		1,135,264	–
Registered voters/turnout		1,792,171	63.35
Source: Khatib [7]

Aftermath

The British government under Lord Lloyd involved themselves in the government formation process, refusing to accept Zaghloul as premier. In a meeting between Lloyd and Zaghloul on 30 May, Zaghloul told him were he to become premier, he would select Adly and Tharwat for posts in his cabinet. When Lloyd objected, Zaghloul told him "Vous pouvez vous renseigner" - French for "come and find out". ^[8] When the meeting broke down, Lloyd used gunboat diplomacy, sending HMS Resolute to Alexandria on 2 June. In the end, Zaghloul acquiesced, citing health reasons. ^[9]

Notes

1. Deeb (1979) gives different numbers: 45 to the Liberal Constitutionalists, 9 to the National Party, and 160 to the Wafd (pp. 138–139). Marsot (1977) gives the numbers as Wafd 144, Liberal Constitutionalists 28, National Party 5, Ittihad 7 and 17 independents (p. 89). Quraishi (1967) cites Khatib in the appendix but on page 102 states that the Wafd won 156 seats out of 214. Terry (1982) gives the numbers the same numbers as Khatib except for the National Party, which she gives 29 seats (p. 188). Khatib's numbers are used because they were the most complete, giving both seats and raw vote totals.

References

1. Khatib 1954, p. 171.
2. Khatib 1954, p. 487.
3. Labib Rizk, Younan (1975). Youssef, Hassan (ed.). تاريخ الوزارات المصرية ١٨٧٨ - ١٩٥٣[History of Egyptian Cabinets 1878-1953] (in Arabic). p. 296.
4. Deeb (1979) , p. 137: "The Liberals had thus learnt that in spite of all the inadequacies of the Constitution, and fear of the Wafdist majority, it was still a lesser evil than the King's tyranny."
5. Deeb 1979, pp. 137–138.
6. Quraishi 1967, p. 232.
7. Khatib 1954, pp. 487–488.
8. Marsot 1977, p. 92.
9. Terry 1982, pp. 189–190.

Sources

• Deeb, Marius (1979). Party Politics in Egypt: the Wafd & its Rivals 1919–1939. Ithaca Press. ISBN   9780903729406.
• Khatib, M.F. (1954). The working of parliamentary institutions in Egypt, 1924-1952 (Thesis). University of Edinburgh.
• Marsot, Afaf Lutfi Al-Sayyid (1977). Egypt’s Liberal Experiment: 1922–1936. University of California Press. ISBN   9780520031098.
• Quraishi, Zaheer M. (1967). Liberal Nationalism in Egypt; Rise and Fall of the Wafd Party. Jamal Printing Press. ISBN   9780861990009.
• Terry, Janice J. (1982). The Wafd: Cornerstone of Egyptian Political Power. Third World Centre for Research and Publishing. ISBN   9780861990009.