2011 Egyptian constitutional referendum

Last updated

2011 Egyptian constitutional referendum
Flag of Egypt.svg
19 March 2011 (2011-03-19)
Results
Choice
Votes %
Check-71-128-204-brightblue.svgYes14,192,57777.27%
Light brown x.svgNo4,174,18722.73%
Valid votes18,366,76499.08%
Invalid or blank votes171,1900.92%
Total votes18,537,954100.00%
Registered voters/turnout41.9%
2011 Egyptian constitutional referendum results by governorate.svg
Results by governorate
Yes:      60-70%      70–80%      80–90%      90–100%
Source: Referendum.eg [1]

A constitutional referendum was held in Egypt on 19 March 2011, [2] 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. [3]

The approved constitutional reforms included a limitation on the presidency to at most two four-year terms, judicial supervision of elections, a requirement for the president to appoint at least one vice president, a commission to draft a new constitution following the parliamentary election, and easier access to presidential elections by candidates—via 30,000 signatures from at least 15 provinces, 30 members of a chamber of the legislature, or nomination by a party holding at least one seat in the legislature. [4]

The reforms were recognised by both sides to increase democratic safeguards, but opponents argued that they did not go far enough and that an election held too soon could favour the well-organised Muslim Brotherhood and members of the former ruling National Democratic Party of Hosni Mubarak. Supporters cited concerns that waiting too long could increase the chances of the military regaining power or risk destabilisation before an election. [3]

A parliamentary election is planned within the next six months, with groups already working to create new political parties, promote candidates and increase turnout among their supporters.

Background

The 1971 constitution was suspended by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces on 13 February 2011, two days after the resignation of Hosni Mubarak. It then organised a committee of jurists to draft amendments to pave the way for new parliamentary and presidential elections. [5] [6]

Had the referendum resulted in a "no" vote, the 1971 constitution would have been nullified and a new one was to be drawn up before elections, which would likely have extended the planned transition period until an election to 2012. [7]

Older constitutional articles

  1. Article 75 of the Constitution of Egypt provides for minimum qualifications of the office of President. [8]
  2. Article 76 of the Constitution of Egypt provides for the method of nomination and election of the President. [8]
  3. Article 77 of the Constitution of Egypt provides for the term of office of the President. [8]
  4. Article 88 of the Constitution of Egypt provides for the method of election of Members of the People's Assembly. [8]
  5. Article 93 of the Constitution of Egypt provides for the method of challenging the election of Members of the People's Assembly. [8]
  6. Article 148 of the Constitution of Egypt provides for the imposition of a State of Emergency. [8]
  7. Article 179 of the Constitution of Egypt allows the President to authorize all courts (including military courts) to try people charged of terrorism. [8]
  8. Article 189 of the Constitution of Egypt provides for the Amendment method of the Constitution. [8]

Proposed amendments

Summary
Women standing in line to vote on the 2011 Egyptian constitutional referendum Women standing in line to vote on the 2011 Egyptian constitutional referendum.jpg
Women standing in line to vote on the 2011 Egyptian constitutional referendum
The men's line during the referendum, in the up-scale neighborhood of Mokattam Hill in Cairo Egypt referendum line.jpg
The men's line during the referendum, in the up-scale neighborhood of Mokattam Hill in Cairo

The proposed amendments include the following:

Article 75

The committee proposed a number of qualifications for a person seeking to nominate themselves in presidential elections, including:

Article 76

The committee proposed 3 tracks for nomination which candidates may choose in presidential elections:

  1. Nominees must win the endorsement of 30 elected members of Parliament;
  2. Nominees must win the endorsement of 30,000 registered voters from 15 governorates with at least 1000 endorsements from each of those governorates;
  3. Parties with at least one elected seat in parliament may nominate one of their members in presidential elections.

Members of Parliament and voters may not endorse the nomination of more than 1 candidate for president.

Article 77

The committee proposed that the term of the President be reduced to four years and that a limit of two terms be adopted.

The issue of limiting presidential powers was postponed until after the elections as part of the new constitution drafting process. [9]

Article 88

The committee proposed that elections and referendums, from voter registration to the announcement of results, be administered and supervised by an all-judge High Elections Commission, whose composition and mandate will be defined by law.

Members of the judiciary nominated by the supreme councils of the judicial agencies and appointed by the High Elections Commission will supervise ballot casting and counting.

Article 93

The Committee proposed that competence to determine the validity of membership of parliamentarians be transferred from parliament to the Supreme Constitutional Court. Challenges to the validity of the membership of a parliamentarian must be filed with the Court within 30 days of the election of the parliamentarian in question and decided upon by the Court within 90 days. The ruling the Court would be final.

Article 139

The committee proposed that the president be required to appoint one or more vice-presidents within 60 days of taking office, and that the president shall determine them and of the vice-president. If the vice-president is dismissed from office, the president must appoint a replacement.

The same qualifications that apply to the presidency would also apply to the vice-president. (See Article 75)

Article 148

The Committee proposed that the consent of a majority of the members of the People’s Assembly be required to declare a state of emergency. In addition, the Committee proposed that the state of emergency could only be declared for a period of up to 6 months. Also, a renewal of the state of emergency would require a popular referendum.

The committee proposed that if the President declares a state of emergency then the People’s Assembly must review the decision within seven days of the declaration. If the People’s Assembly is not in session at the time, the President must immediately call it to session. If the People’s Assembly is dissolved the declaration must be reviewed by it in its first session.

Article 179

The committee proposed that the Article be stricken from the constitution. No further information available.

Article 189 and 189 repeated

The committee proposed that that Shura Council function without it appointment members until such time as a president is elected to fill the appointment of 1/3 of its seats

The committee proposed that the president or at least half the members of the People’s Assembly and the Shura Council may request the drafting of a new constitution.

The committee proposed that within six months of their election the elected members of the People’s Assembly and the Shura Council must appoint, by majority vote, a 100-member constituent assembly to draft a new constitution. The constituent assembly would have to complete the draft within six months of its creation, and within 15 days of the completion of the draft constitution the president must call for a referendum on it.

Polls

A 13 March poll by the Egyptian government on its Information and Decision Support Center website said that 24,121 Egyptians (57 percent of the total number of voters) would vote against the amendments, while 15,173 Egyptians (37 percent) supported them. Five percent were undecided. [10]

Campaign

A diagram that explains the 2011 Egyptian Constitutional Referendum process based on a Yes or No vote on 19 March 2011 2011 Egyptian Constitutional Referendum process in English.svg
A diagram that explains the 2011 Egyptian Constitutional Referendum process based on a Yes or No vote on 19 March 2011

The Egyptian military called for a media silence over the referendum. [11] It also set up a committee to review the proposed amendments. [12] Later saying it would help to secure a vote on the proposed amendments. [13]

Though 16,000 members of the judiciary were scheduled to supervise the referendum, [14] 2000 judges threatened to boycott the supervisory process. [15]

Amidst other controversy, a court ruled against canceling the referendum following an appeal. [16]

Opponents

External videos
Nuvola apps kaboodle.svg An AD asking people to vote NO by many celebrities, public and political figures on YouTube
Nuvola apps kaboodle.svg Another AD asking people to vote NO by many celebrities, public and political figures on YouTube

An opposition coalition (including presidential candidates Amr Moussa and Mohamed ElBaradei, the New Wafd Party, the Coalition of the Youth of the Revolution, the National Progressive Unionist Party, the el-Ghad Party and the Egyptian Arab Socialist Party) criticised the proposed amendments as not enough and that the new constitution needs to be written immediately to regulate the process and the requirements for members of parliament. They also said that the President's power was not limited enough under the proposed changes. [7]

The Christian Church was also opposed to the amendments, [17] as was the reformist faction of the Muslim Brotherhood. [18]

Proponents

The Muslim Brotherhood and the Salafi movement (including preachers such as Sheikh Mohammed Hassan  [ ar ] and Mohammed Abdel Maksoud  [ ar ] [19] ), among other Islamist groups,[ which? ] think that the amendments are suitable for the time being and that the situation in Egypt is not suitable to write a new constitution at the moment. They have suggested that Article 2 of the constitution (which states that "Islam is the Religion of the State. Arabic is its official language, and the principal source of legislation is Islamic Jurisprudence" [20] ) will be removed or altered if the proposed changes are not approved even though the constitutional amendment committee said that Article 2 will not be touched. [21] Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi advised Egyptians to approve the referendum. [22] The NDP also have asked their base to vote Yes. [23]

The Muslim Brotherhood and the NDP are also perceived to be in favour of an approval because early elections could benefit them the most as they already have the biggest grassroots support while smaller and newly founded parties would have little time to prepare for elections in the planned schedule. [7]

Election

Voting issues

External videos
Nuvola apps kaboodle.svg ElBaradei Attacked by Voters on YouTube

Results

Another view of the men's line in Mokattam during the referendum. The queue was so long it extended well outside the built-up area and into the desert. Referendum in the desert.jpg
Another view of the men's line in Mokattam during the referendum. The queue was so long it extended well outside the built-up area and into the desert.
ChoiceVotes%
For14,192,57777.27
Against4,174,18722.73
Total18,366,764100.00
Valid votes18,366,76499.08
Invalid/blank votes171,1900.92
Total votes18,537,954100.00
Source: Supreme Judicial Committee

By governorate

GovernorateTotal
votes		Valid
votes		Invalid
votes		ForAgainst
Votes%Votes%
Cairo 2,306,5612,283,36323,1981,381,73859.9901,62539.1
Alexandria 1,524,3871,513,55210,8351,015,94566.6497,60732.6
Sharqia 1,226,7991,217,3539,4461,054,74985.9162,60413.3
Minya 1,121,2601,106,81714,443848,10169.1258,71621.1
Dakahlia 1,104,7241,096,9057,819874,38479.1222,52120.1
Beheira 1,070,7331,061,7968,937931,33887.0130,45812.2
Qalyubia 960,883952,6478,236771,66780.3180,98018.8
Gharbia 933,732926,0057,727729,92073.5196,08521.0
Giza 907,696895,90811,788610,77967.3285,12931.4
Asyut 803,827794,0859,742583,30472.6210,78126.2
Monufia 759,415753,5985,817652,95286.0100,64613.3
Sohag 751,180744,4816,699585,51477.9158,96721.2
Helwan 601,720596,8864,834429,82171.4167,06527.7
6th of October 574,399568,2566,143479,71683.588,54015.4
Beni Suef 568,437562,9555,482492,44186.670,51412.4
Kafr el-Sheikh 568,336564,3923,944496,19187.368,20112.0
Faiyum 544,128538,5365,592486,01189.352,5259.7
Qena 452,480449,8982,582387,29285.662,60613.8
Damietta 332,342330,0832,259273,21882.256,86517.1
Ismailia 253,328250,9072,421195,42877.155,47921.9
Aswan 247,885245,4792,406203,44982.142,03017.0
Port Said 213,666211,3772,289149,63570.061,74229.0
Luxor 203,683201,4672,216164,24180.637,22618.3
Suez 173,106171,0752,031134,86477.936,21120.9
Red Sea 104,233102,4371,79664,92462.337,51336.0
Matruh 84,55583,62892777,28391.46,3457.5
North Sinai 63,97463,31865654,60485.48,71413.6
New Valley 41,35740,89046737,18689.93,7049.0
South Sinai 39,12838,67045825,88266.112,78832.7
Source: Supreme Judicial Committee [29]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Assembly (Republic of China)</span> 1947–2005 electoral college and constitutional convention in the East Asian country

The National Assembly was the authoritative legislative body of the Republic of China, from 1947 to 2005. Along with the Control Yuan and the Legislative Yuan, the National Assembly formed the tricameral parliament of the Republic of China.

A constitutional amendment is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly altering the text. Conversely, they can be appended to the constitution as supplemental additions, thus changing the frame of government without altering the existing text of the document.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">President of Egypt</span> Head of state and government of Egypt

The president of the Arab Republic of Egypt is the executive head of state of Egypt and the de facto appointer 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.

A supermajority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level of support which is greater than the threshold of one-half used for a simple majority. Supermajority rules in a democracy can help to prevent a majority from eroding fundamental rights of a minority, but can also hamper efforts to respond to problems and encourage corrupt compromises at times when action is taken. Changes to constitutions, especially those with entrenched clauses, commonly require supermajority support in a legislature. Parliamentary procedure requires that any action of a deliberative assembly that may alter the rights of a minority have a supermajority requirement, such as a two-thirds vote. In consensus democracy the supermajority rule is applied in most cases.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Senate (Egypt)</span> Upper house of the Parliament of Egypt

The Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Egypt since its introduction in the 2019 Egyptian constitutional referendum and the subsequent 2020 Egyptian Senate election. The current president of the Senate is Abdel-Wahab Abdel-Razeq.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constitution of Belarus</span> Supreme law of Belarus

The Constitution of the Republic of Belarus is the supreme basic law of Belarus. The Constitution is composed of a preamble and nine sections divided into 146 articles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Egyptian Constitution of 1971</span>

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constitution of Liberia</span> Supreme law of the Republic of Liberia

The Constitution of Liberia is the supreme law of the Republic of Liberia. The current constitution, which came into force on 6 January 1986, replaced the Liberian Constitution of 1847, which had been in force since the independence of Liberia. Much like the 1847 Constitution, the Constitution creates a system of government heavily modeled on the Federal Government of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 Egyptian presidential election</span>

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. They were the first democratic presidential elections in Egyptian 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. He later faced massive protests for and against his rule, only to be ousted in a military coup in July that year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010 Egyptian parliamentary election</span>

Parliamentary elections were held in Egypt in 2010. The first stage was held on 28 November 2010 and the second round was held on 5 December 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Association for Change</span>

National Association for Change(Arabic: الجمعية الوطنية للتغيير) is a loose grouping of the various Egyptian of all political affiliations and religion, men and women, including representatives of civil society and young people aims to change Egypt. There was general agreement on the need to unite all the voices calling for change within a National Assembly. Mohamed ElBaradei is in-charge of the National Association for Change. The movement aims for general reforms in the political scene and achieving some of those procedures and guarantees necessitates the amendment of articles 76, 77, and 88 of the constitution as soon as possible. Worth mentioning is that the banned political group the Muslim Brotherhood were represented by one of their key figures who attended the meeting however their stand in accepting a non-member of their group as a candidate is yet unclear. It is also unknown whether Amr Moussa the head of the Arab League who met with Elbaradei a day earlier will be part of the new movement. The goal of the group is to bring about political reform based on democracy and social justice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constitution of Kenya</span> Supreme law of the Republic of Kenya

The Constitution of Kenya is the supreme law of the Republic of Kenya. There have been three significant versions of the constitution, with the most recent redraft being enabled in 2010. The constitution was presented to the Attorney General of Kenya on 7 April 2010, officially published on 6 May 2010, and was subjected to a referendum on 4 August 2010. The new Constitution was approved by 67% of Kenyan voters. The constitution was promulgated on 27 August 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011–12 Egyptian parliamentary election</span>

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 committee formed in February 2011 by the Egyptian military following suspension of the constitution during the 2011 Egyptian revolution. The committee's purpose is to review the constitution of Egypt, to be ratified by a referendum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of the Egyptian Crisis under the SCAF</span>

The following is a chronological summary of the major events that occurred during the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, after Hosni Mubarak's resignation. Protests and riots led to the deaths of hundreds, injuries of thousands and the arrests of tens of thousands. Millions have mobilised the streets since the revolution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Egyptian Constitutional Declaration of 2011</span>

The Constitutional Declaration of 2011 was a measure adopted by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces of Egypt on 30 March 2011. The declaration was intended to serve as the fundamental law of the country pending the enactment of a permanent constitution, following the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak on 11 February.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constitution Party (Egypt)</span> Egyptian political party

The Constitution Party is a political party in Egypt. Founded by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mohammad ElBaradei in 2012, it aims to protect and promote the principles and objectives of the 2011 Egyptian revolution, according to liberal ideals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 Egyptian constitutional referendum</span>

A constitutional referendum was held in Egypt in two rounds on 15 and 22 December 2012. Egyptians living abroad were scheduled to vote between 8 and 11 December. Voting for expatriates had been delayed until 12 December 2012 and was extended until 17 December 2012. Voters were asked whether they approve of the draft constitution that was approved by the Constituent Assembly on 30 November 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012–2013 Egyptian protests</span> Period of unrest around the 2012 presidential elections and 2013 coup

The 2012–2013 Egyptian protests were part of the crisis in Egypt including the June 2013 protests, the July 2013 coup d'état, and part of the post-coup unrest. They saw varying opposition against three contiguous heads of state; namely, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), Muslim Brotherhood, and the de facto ruling Egyptian Armed Forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 Egyptian constitutional referendum</span>

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 lengthening the then president's current term and allowing him to stand for an additional term in office, 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.

References

  1. ↑ الأرقام الفعلية للتصويت (in Arabic). اللجنة القضائية العليا للإشراف علي استفتاء تعديل الدستور المصري. Archived from the original on 30 April 2011. Retrieved 20 March 2011.
  2. ↑ Zayan, Jailan (4 March 2011). "AFP: New Egypt PM addresses crowds in Tahrir Square". Archived from the original on 16 December 2012. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  3. 1 2 Michael, Maggie (11 March 2011). "Constitutional amendments approved in Egypt referendum". The Star. Toronto. Retrieved 21 March 2011.
  4. ↑ "Commission announces proposed changes to Egyptian Constitution | Al-Masry Al-Youm: Today's News from Egypt". Al-Masry Al-Youm. 26 February 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  5. ↑ "Egypt cyber activists say they met military rulers". Agence France-Presse. Archived from the original on 8 September 2012. Retrieved 15 February 2011.
  6. ↑ "Egypt to call March referendum this week: lawyer". Reuters. 27 February 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  7. 1 2 3 "BBC News - Q&A: Egypt's constitutional referendum". bbc.co.uk. 11 February 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "THE CONSTITUTION OF THE ARAB REPUBLIC OF EGYPT, as amended 2007" (PDF). constitutionnet.org. 2007. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  9. ↑ "BBC News - Egypt's army passes draft constitutional amendments". Bbc.co.uk. 26 February 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  10. ↑ "Majority of Egyptians against constitutional amendments, says poll | Al-Masry Al-Youm: Today's News from Egypt". Al-Masry Al-Youm. 13 March 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  11. ↑ Egypt military calls for media silence on referendum beginning Friday, Al-Masry Al-Youm
  12. ↑ Armed Forces form committee to analyze opposition to amendments, Al-Masry Al-Youm
  13. ↑ Army to help secure vote on Constitution changes, Al-Masry Al-Youm
  14. ↑ 16,000 from judiciary to supervise constitutional referendum, Al-Masry Al-Youm
  15. ↑ 2000 judges threaten not to supervise referendum, Al-Masry Al-Youm
  16. ↑ Court rules against canceling constitutional referendum, Al-Masry Al-Youm
  17. ↑ Source: Church rejects proposed constitutional amendments, Al-Masry Al-Youm
  18. ↑ Muslim Brotherhood reformist wing rejects constitutional amendments, Al-Masry Al-Youm
  19. ↑ "Religious propaganda, vote-buying flourish in Egypt ahead of vote | Al-Masry Al-Youm: Today's News from Egypt" . Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  20. ↑ "Egypt's Government Services Portal - Egypt Constitution - Chapter one: The State". Egypt.gov.eg. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  21. ↑ "Constitutional amendment committee: Article II will not be touched | Al-Masry Al-Youm: Today's News from Egypt". Al-Masry Al-Youm. 20 February 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  22. ↑ "Gulf Times – Qatar's top-selling English daily newspaper - Qatar". Gulf-times.com. Archived from the original on 21 March 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  23. ↑ "Egyptian Islamists, along with NDP, campaign hard for a "Yes" vote on Constitutional amendments - Politics - Egypt - Ahram Online". English.ahram.org.eg. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  24. 1 2 3 نيفين مسعد مارس 2011 09:54:56 ص بتوقيت القاهرة. "فى خطورة تديين السياسة - نيفين مسعد - مقالات وأعمدة - جريدة الشروق". Shorouknews.com. Retrieved 23 March 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  25. ↑ "الأخبار - عربي - مجموعة تمنع البرادعي من التصويت". Aljazeera.net. 14 November 2006. Retrieved 21 March 2011.
  26. ↑ ElBaradei, supporters attacked at polling station, Al-Masry Al-Youm , 19 March 2011.
  27. ↑ Large turnout for Egypt's constitutional referendum, BBC News , 19 March 2011.
  28. ↑ Salem, Mona. "AFP: Hundreds of Islamists stone Egypt's ElBaradei". Archived from the original on 22 March 2011. Retrieved 21 March 2011.
  29. ↑ "إستفتاء.مصر - نتيجة الاستفتاء على مستوى المحافظات". Supreme Judicial Committee. Retrieved 21 March 2011.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.