 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
Do you agree to amending Article 76 of the Constitution of the Arab Republic of Egypt? | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Results | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|---|
|
| Constitution (history) |
| Political parties (former) |
 Egyptportal |
A constitutional referendum was held in Egypt on 25 May 2005. Voters were asked to approve or reject an amendment to the constitution that would introduce direct elections for the presidency. Opposition parties called for a boycott of the vote, which was passed by a large majority.
Under the existing constitution, the People's Assembly, the lower house of the then-bicameral Parliament of Egypt, decided upon a candidate for president. That candidate was then confirmed by the people in a referendum. The incumbent president Hosni Mubarak was confirmed in four referendums in 1981, 1987, 1993 and 1999 receiving at least 95% supporting votes in each referendum. [1] By 2005 international and domestic pressure grew for reforms to this process to permit direct elections for the presidency. [2]
On the 26 February 2005 President Mubarak called on parliament to amend Article 76 of the constitution to allow multi candidate elections for president to take place in time for the presidential election due later in the year. This change would then be put to a referendum in May. [3] On the 10 May the Parliament of Egypt overwhelmingly approved the change to the constitution by 405 votes to 34 and the referendum was set for the 25 May. [4] [5]
Egyptian voters were asked to vote on the question:
Do you agree to amending Article 76 of the Constitution of the Arab Republic of Egypt? [6]
Opposition parties called on voters to boycott the referendum. They were opposed to the strict requirements that the amended constitution would require candidates to meet in order to be able to stand in presidential elections. [6] Under the proposed amendment independent candidates would be required to get the support of 250 elected members of councils and parliament including 65 of the 444 members of the People's Assembly of Egypt in order to stand. Candidates from political parties could stand in the upcoming election in September, but for future presidential elections they would have to win 5% of the seats in the People's Assembly before being able to field a candidate. Political parties would also have to have existed for five years before they could put a candidate up for election. [7] The councils and parliament were all dominated by members of the governing National Democratic Party and no other political party then met the 5% level. [8] [9] As a result, the opposition said that the changes would not allow candidates to stand unless the governing party permitted them to. [7] As well as the legal opposition parties, the banned Muslim Brotherhood group also called on voters to boycott the vote, describing it as meaningless. [10] [11]
The government described the amendment as the historic beginning of a new democratic era. [7] They said that restrictions on who could stand as a candidate were necessary in order to prevent candidates who would use their wealth to buy votes and to ensure that only candidates who had a serious chance could stand. [12]
On the 24 May five petitions by the opposition to stop the vote were rejected by the Egyptian judiciary. [13]
On the day of the referendum itself demonstrations were made against the strict rules on who would be able to stand in future presidential elections. At protests in Cairo demonstrators were beaten by government agents and supporters. [14] Observers reported seeing a low turnout at the polls in the capital Cairo but reports said there had been a larger turnout elsewhere. [15]
Many Egyptians got time off from work to vote and the Governor of Cairo gave free public transport to those who showed their voter registration card. [9] In a number of areas government employees were taken by bus to the polling stations in order to vote with support for President Mubarak being said to be one of the main reasons for people to vote yes in the referendum. [9] [16] The official turnout figures at around 54% were higher than in any previous presidential referendum. [10]
| Choice | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| For | 13,593,552 | 82.86 | |
| Against | 2,811,894 | 17.14 | |
| Total | 16,405,446 | 100.00 | |
| Valid votes | 16,405,446 | 95.47 | |
| Invalid/blank votes | 778,856 | 4.53 | |
| Total votes | 17,184,302 | 100.00 | |
| Registered voters/turnout | 32,086,353 | 53.56 | |
| Source: IFES | |||
Following the referendum a report produced by Egyptian judges for the Cairo Judges' Syndicate said that the referendum had seen large scale fraud and that the results had been falsified. They said that polling stations where they had supervised voting had seen only a very low turnout, while in areas overseen by civil servants turnout was often over 90%. The Interior Ministry, however, rejected these claims saying that people in Southern Egypt had turned out in high levels due to their interest in voting. [17]
Presidential elections were held under the amended constitution in September 2005 and President Mubarak was re-elected with over 88% of the vote on a low turnout. [18]
The politics of Kyrgyzstan, officially known as the Kyrgyz Republic, takes place in the framework of a presidential system representative democratic republic, whereby the President is head of state and the Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers is head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament. The Economist Intelligence Unit rated Kyrgyzstan an "authoritarian regime" in 2022.
The president of the Arab Republic of Egypt is the executive head of state of Egypt and the de facto appointee of the official head of government under the Egyptian Constitution of 2014. Under the various iterations of the Constitution of Egypt following the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, the president is also the supreme commander of the Armed Forces, and head of the executive branch of the Egyptian government. The current president is Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who has been in office since 8 June 2014.
Elections in Egypt are held for the President and a bicameral legislature. The President of Egypt is elected for a six-year term by popular vote after draft amendments to the 2013 constitution altered the presidential term limits from the original four years to six years.
Kefaya is the unofficial moniker of the Egyptian Movement for Change, a grassroots coalition which prior to the 2011 revolution drew its support from across Egypt's political spectrum. It was a platform for protest against Hosni Mubarak's presidency and the possibility he might seek to transfer power directly to his son Gamal; political corruption and stagnation; "the blurring of the lines between power and wealth; and the regime's cruelty, coercion and disregard for human rights."
Presidential elections were held in Egypt on September 7, 2005, the first to feature more than one candidate. Incumbent president Hosni Mubarak was re-elected for a fifth consecutive six-year term in office, with official results showing he won 88.6% of the vote. Mubarak's main opponent, Ayman Nour, of the El-Ghad Party, is estimated to have received 7.3% of the vote and Numan Gumaa received 2.8%, however, Nour claimed that prior polling results showed over 30%. Criticism of the election process has centred on the process of selecting the eligible candidates, and on alleged election-law violations during voting. Mubarak was sworn in for his new term on September 27.
The Constitution of the Arab Republic of Egypt was the former constitution of Egypt. It was adopted on 11 September 1971 through a public referendum. It was later amended in 1980, 2005, and 2007. It was proclaimed to update the democratic representative system in assertion of the rule of law, independence of the judiciary, and party plurality. On 13 February 2011, the Constitution was suspended following the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak as a result of the 2011 Egyptian Revolution. On 30 March 2011, it was "effectively voided" after a new provisional constitution was passed by the country's ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. It has since been superseded by the Egyptian Constitution of 2012 and the current Egyptian Constitution of 2014.
A referendum to confirm the presidential candidate Bashar al-Assad was held in Syria on 27 May 2007, after the People's Council of Syria unanimously voted to propose the incumbent for a second term on 10 May 2007.
A constitutional referendum was held in Armenia on 27 November 2005. The referendum was on a series of changes to the constitution of Armenia which were backed by the international community. The official results had a high turnout and overwhelming support for the changes. However the opposition and election monitors said that there were serious irregularities with the referendum.
A constitutional referendum was held in Niger on 4 August 2009. The referendum proposed the dissolution of the Fifth Republic and the creation of the Sixth Republic under a fully presidential system of government, offering a yes or no vote on the suspension of the constitution and granting President Mamadou Tandja a three-year interim government, during which the constitution of the Sixth Republic would be formulated. On 20 June, the Constitutional Court declared the plan illegal, but Tandja subsequently assumed emergency powers and dissolved the Court. The events surrounding this election led to a constitutional crisis.
Presidential elections were held in Egypt in 2012, with the first round on 23 and 24 May 2012 and the second on 16 and 17 June. The 2012 Egyptian Presidential election was the first democratic presidential election of Egypt's history. The Muslim Brotherhood declared early 18 June 2012, that its candidate, Mohamed Morsi, won Egypt's presidential election, which would be the first victory of an Islamist as head of state in the Arab world. It was the second presidential election in Egypt's history with more than one candidate, following the 2005 election, and the first presidential election after the 2011 Egyptian revolution which ousted president Hosni Mubarak, during the Arab Spring. However, Morsi's presidency was brief and short-lived, and he later faced massive protests for and against his rule, only to be ousted in a military coup in July that year.
A nationwide referendum was held in Moldova on 5 September 2010 on whether or not the country should amend the Constitution of Moldova to return to direct popular election of the president. Since 2001, the president had been indirectly elected by Parliament, with a supermajority of 61 seats required for election. The voters are asked to answer the following question: "Would you agree with the Constitutional amendment, which would allow the election of the President of the Republic of Moldova by the entire population?" Voters chose one of the proposed options: "Yes (for)" or "No (against)". Of those who had cast their vote, 87.83% chose "Yes". However, the referendum did not pass because only 30.29% of voters turned out, short of the necessary 33% for the referendum to be considered valid.
A referendum to amend the Constitution of Liberia was held on 23 August 2011. Voters chose whether to ratify four amendments regarding judge tenure, elections scheduling, presidential candidate requirements and the electoral system. The National Elections Commission of Liberia (NEC) oversaw the referendum.
Parliamentary elections were held in Egypt from 28 November 2011 to 11 January 2012, following the revolution that ousted President Hosni Mubarak, after which the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) dissolved Parliament. However the dissolution was ruled unconstitutional and Parliament was reinstated. Originally, the elections had been scheduled to be held in September 2011, but were postponed amid concerns that established parties would gain undue advantage.
A constitutional referendum was held in Egypt on 19 March 2011, following the 2011 Egyptian revolution. More than 14 million (77%) were in favour, while around 4 million (23%) opposed the changes; 41% of 45 million eligible voters turned out to vote.
Shura Council elections were held in Egypt between 29 January and 22 February 2012. The Freedom and Justice Party emerged as the largest party in the council, winning 105 of the 180 elected seats.
Following the 2011 Egyptian revolution, the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt became one of the main forces contending for political power in Egypt against the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) and other established centers of the former Hosni Mubarak regime.
Presidential elections were held in Egypt between 26 and 28 May 2014. There were only two candidates, former Egyptian defence minister Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Egyptian Popular Current candidate Hamdeen Sabahi. El-Sisi won the election in a landslide victory, having received 97% of votes.
A constitutional referendum was held in Egypt on 14 and 15 January 2014 and with Egyptians abroad voting between 8 and 12 January. The new constitution was approved by 98.1% of voters. Turnout was 38.6%.
A constitutional referendum was held in the Republic of the Congo on 25 October 2015 regarding a proposal to change the constitution, primarily to modify the rules regarding presidential terms.
A constitutional referendum was held in Egypt between 20 and 22 April 2019, The main proposed amendments were re-establishing the presidential term to six years, from four previously, and removing the limit of two terms on the President, thereby allowing President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to potentially remain in power until 2030. The changes were approved by 88.83% of voters who voted, with a 44% turnout.
| Presidential elections | |
|---|---|
| Parliamentary elections | |
| Senate elections | |
| Municipal elections | |
| Referendums | |
