Politics of Egypt

Constitution

The Constitution of the Arab Republic of Egypt was approved by referendum in 1970 and amended in 1980 and 2005. The Constitution of the Arab Republic of Egypt declares Egypt to be a ‘democratic and socialist republic’, operating under a ‘multiparty system’ semi-presidential system.

The national government of Egypt is divided into an executive branch, a legislative branch and a judiciary branch. The Constitution grants wide powers to the executive. The President of Egypt heads the executive branch. The President’s powers stem from his ability to appoint the powerful prime minister and one or more Vice-Presidents. However, the President’s choice of the prime minister has to yield and maintain the approval the People’s Assembly (Majilis Al-Sha’ab), the lower house of Parliament.

Egypt is a unitary state, meaning that its subdivisions do not have constitutional status. However, the various legal subdivisions, the governorates (Muhafazat), cities (Modon), and counties (Kofour), have various attributions.

Executive branch

President of the Republic

In February 2005, President Mubarak proposed an amendment to article 76 of the constitution that would allow, for the first time, multi-candidate presidential elections. A referendum was held on May 25, 2005, as required by the constitution, and the amendment was approved (reportedly, with a majority of over 82% support). However, the terms of the newly adopted amendment make it very difficult, if not impossible, for candidates other than those of Mubarak’s National Democratic Party, which holds about 90% of parliament seats, to run for the elections. The hurdles include requiring aspiring presidential candidates to first secure the support of 250 elected officials (including 140 local council members, 65 People’s Assembly deputies, and 25 members of the Shura Council), and requiring that the parties they represent to have existed for at least five years. In the event, the referendum was boycotted by some of Egypt’s leading opposition parties, including the Wafd.

Under the 1980 amendments of the Egyptian Constitution, the President is elected for six years. As of 2005, President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak has been the President of the Republic since 14 October 1981 and is currently serving his last year of his fourth term. President Mubarak was re-elected in 1987, 1993, and 1999, making him the longest serving Egyptian President in the history of the Republic.

The President of Republic is elected indirectly in a two-stage system unique to Egypt. The People’s Assembly, the lower house of Parliament, nominates one of a number of candidates for presidency. The presidential candidate requires at least a two-thirds majority in the People’s Assembly in order to proceed to the second stage of the elections. The presidential candidate is voted on in a yes-or-no binding public referendum. On achieving a simple majority in the public referendum, the presidential candidate is sworn in as President. However, if the candidate is fails to obtain the required majority, the People’s Assembly nominates a new candidate for presidency, thus returning to the first stage of elections. The President may be re-elected multiple times with no limitation on the number of terms allowed to be served.

The Egyptian system for presidential election is regarded by many as not being fully democratic due to the fact that it is the People’s Assembly and not the populace itself, who retains the upper-hand in choosing the Chief of State. In addition, it allows for whatever party or coalition controlling the People’s Assembly to put forward their candidate as the presidential candidate. This greatly explains how in most of the 1980s and 1990s the National Democratic Party has managed to maintain the office of President and a parliamentary majority.