Jack Shenker writes that early results from the Egyptian elections "suggest that the ruling National Democratic party (NDP) has captured 96% of the seats, while the 88 opposition members from the Muslim Brotherhood, could be erased to zero." Shenker interviewed Shadi Hamid of the Brookings Institution for the article: "'We knew it was going to be bad, but I don't think anyone realised it was going to be ...

Jerzy Buzek, President of the European Parliament, called on Egyptian authorities to “relax the conditions for political participation,” and allow “dissenting voices” in the press to be heard.  “A democratic Egypt is in the interests first and foremost of its citizens. For the EU a democratic Egypt is as important as a stable Egypt,” Buzek said, adding “if one claims that the time is not ripe for democracy, people might start thinking ...

Frontline's Tehran Bureau has published two articles profiling President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's political history. The first article focuses on Ahmadinejad's use of populism to set himself apart from the clergy, and his sometimes messianic self image. The second article explores the tensions between a more secular nationalism, often associated with Ali Shariati, and the "Velaayat-e Faghih (guardianship of the Islamic jurist)," associated with Supreme Leader Khomeini and the Islamic revolution. The ...

The White House released a statement Tuesday expressing “disappointment” with the process of Egypt’s recent parliamentary election. National Security Council Spokesman Mike Hammer said that “numerous reported irregularities at the polls, the lack of international monitors and the many problems encountered by domestic monitors, and the restrictions on the basic freedoms of association, speech and press in the run-up to the elections are worrying.” Hammer also reiterated that the U.S. is committed ...

On Monday, the U.S. State Department issued a statement criticizing Egypt’s parliamentary election. Widespread irregularities “call into question the fairness and transparency of the process,” State Department Spokesman P.J. Crowley said, citing “election-day interference and intimidation by security forces” and crackdowns on opposition parties and independent media prior to the vote. “Egyptians will only have full confidence in their elections when the government is able to address existing flaws, and ensure full ...

The Economist writes that the Egyptian government’s administration of the parliamentary election was, as expected, clearly flawed. Moreover, the regime made little attempt to hide the rigging of the election. “The government was undeterred by images of such things as thugs intimidating voters with clubs and machetes, and election officials patiently filling in piles of blank ballots,” the author writes. The government’s willingness to blatantly rig the election is indicative of the ...

Steven A. Cook writes that "the overwhelming victory of the ruling National Democratic Party only reinforces the prevailing non-democratic status quo. At the same time, the conduct of the elections hat makes these elections unique, is their rejection, en masse, of the status quo, and their collective chants for reform and change - regardless of which opposition party or candidate they support."

The Nazra Association for Feminist Studies, a member of the Independent Coalition for Election Observation, has released a report titled "The Gender Perspective in the 2010 Parliamentary Elections." The report's findings include "Female candidates, particularly those of the NDP, are guilty of the same violations (violence, fraudulent ballot cards) as male candidates," and "The majority of women supported male candidates. The majority of those who supported female candidates were Muslim ...

Human Rights Watch (HRW) reports that “numerous irregularities”  and “widespread allegations of voter fraud” plagued Egypt’s parliamentary election Sunday. Based on interviews conducted at polling places across the country, Joe Stork,  HRW’s Middle East Division Deputy Director, concluded that “the repeated exclusion of opposition representatives and independent monitors from polling stations, along with reports of violence and fraud suggest that citizens were not able to partake in free elections.”

Amnesty International issued a statement calling on Kuwaiti authorities to release Muhammad 'Abd al-Qader al-Jasem, the Kuwaiti lawyer and journalist who was sentenced to one year in prison last week for a writing a blog post criticizing Prime Minister Shaikh Nasser al-Mohammad al-Sabah. Amnesty’s Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa Philip Luther said "Amnesty International believes that Muhammad 'Abd al-Qader al-Jasem has been convicted and sentenced solely for non-violently exercising ...

Newsweek’s Babak Dehghanpisheh recently interviewed Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohammad Badie. Over the course of the conversation, Badie explained the logic behind the Brotherhood’s decision to participate in the elections, shared his thoughts on the government crackdown before the election, and rejected assertions that the organization’s goal is to establish an Islamic state in Egypt. On the U.S. role in Egypt Badie said, “American administrations keep supporting regimes that are undemocratic. ...

The Egyptian Association for Democratic Development (EASD) has released a statement following yesterday's elections in Egypt: "Although the Egyptian Association for Supporting Democratic Development (EASD) has abided by the regulations set by HEC, its observers were denied access to and expelled from polling stations.What happened in the counting centers was more serious, as the majority of EASD observers were denied access to counting centers altogether." Numerous examples of observers being ...

Al Masry Al Youm reports that the preliminary results of Egypt’s parliamentary election indicate a “sweeping victory” by the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP). Muslim Brotherhood leader Mahmoud Ezzat told the paper that Brotherhood candidates did not win any parliamentary seats during the first round of voting but 15 moved on to the run-off elections, which will take place Sunday. Wafd’s Margeritte Azer claimed victory in nine districts and said that 12 ...

In contrast to reports from independent media and civil society organizations, the Egyptian government hailed the elections as “a success” and praised the “high level of transparency” in a statement Sunday. While acknowledging limited violence and fraud, the Minister of Information Anas El-Fekky said that the police and poll staff acted “quickly” and “decisively” to resolve the issues: “the HEC has received reports of serious breaches of the electoral law in ...

The Independent Coalition for Election Observation has released its third report on the events of today's elections in Egypt. The report contains accounts of incidents ranging from forgery to voter intimidation. Babylon and Beyond provides two videos, one showing electoral fraud and the other voter intimidation, to help illustrate the situation. According to the article, "heavy restrictions imposed on both print and broadcast media during Sunday's elections, hundreds of ...

The Egyptian Association for Democratic Development (EASD) has released its fifth statement on the parliamentary elections in Egypt. The statement focuses on the early closing of polling stations, which by law are mandated to remain open until 7 pm local time. Abigail Hauslohner, writing for Time, describes the scene: "Voters and independent monitors complained of police intimidation, 
ballot stuffing, and bribery. Independent monitors wielding government 
accreditation said police ...

The Egyptian Association for Supporting Democratic Development (EASD) has released a statement on the violence that occurred during today's elections in Egypt. "'Violence' was the theme of the first hours of the parliamentary elections for all candidates whether they represent the NDP, opposition parties, MB, or are independents. For candidates, as well as those responsible for running the elections, it was a competition to commit violations." Also, Max Strasser has ...

The Egyptian Association for Supporting Democratic Development (EASD) has released their fourth statement on the parliamentary elections. The statement describes many incidents of ballot stuffing, group voting, and vote buying witnessed by EASD monitors. The Egyptian government has also denied that eight people have been killed in election related violence, saying that "no one died in connection with the elections," according to a report in The Daily News Egypt. The ...

The Egyptian Association for Supporting Democratic Development (EASD) has released it's third election day statement (pdf) detailing incidents of violence and ballot stuffing. The Independent Coalition for Election Observation has also released a new report, its second of the day, tracking electoral violations and inconsistencies throughout many of Egypt's voting districts.

The Wafd Party has issued a statement criticizing “flagrant violations” against its candidates according to Al Masry Al Youm. Violence,  polling place closures, and blatant fraud—all carried out with the assistance of the state security services—played a significant role in Wafd’s electoral losses according to party leaders. Margeret Azer, head of Wafd’s election supervision committee, told Daily News Egypt “The elections are going really bad; candidates were forced out of most voting stations and fraud in ...