Abu Dhabi, Dubai: Thousands of buoyant Egyptians thronged Egypt’s embassy in Abu Dhabi and consulate in Dubai early on Friday morning to cast their votes for a new president.
Cheerful citizens were greeted at the polling booths with chocolate and juice before they cast their ballots in a celebratory atmosphere with patriotic tunes playing in the background.
Two candidates are running for president — incumbent President Abdul Fattah Al Sissi and Ghad party leader Mousa Mustafa Mousa.
Egyptian expatriates will be able to cast their votes at 139 polling stations located in embassies and consulates across 124 countries till Sunday.
Many of the UAE residents — the third largest Egyptian expatriate community in the world after Saudi Arabia and Kuwait — said they were not just casting their votes in the presidential election, but were voicing gratitude to Egypt and President Al Sissi for his socioeconomic and political reforms.
Buoyant Dr Nabeel Kamal, a pharmacist, who has lived in the UAE for 32 years, said it was a party day and it’s a day when we can express our support to Egypt and gratitude to the [Egyptian] Armed Forces and police who gave their all for the nation.
“Today we are here to honour the legacy of the Egyptian heroes who had sacrificed their lives in the line of duty, defending the sovereignty of the nation in Sinai and across Egypt,” he said.
His son Peter, 18, an New York University Abu Dhabi fine art student, said it’s an honour to vote in Egypt’s presidential election.
“My vote will make a difference and that’s why I’m here today to cast my ballot,” Peter said.
Major-General Retired Mustafa Mortada, an adviser at the UAE Armed Forces, said: “I’m the happiest person on earth to cast my vote in the presidential election today. I’m voting for President Al Sissi, who defeated terrorism and corruption in Egypt.”
Al Hussaini Mohammad Esmail, 54, a foreman in a maintenance company, said he was voting for Al Sissi, the Armed Forces and the police whose sacrifices have made the nation proud, helped to alleviate injustice and restored peace and security across Egypt.
Back home, the election will be held between March 26 and 28. The winner will be announced on April 2. Any run-off vote will take place between April 19 and 21 for expatriates and on April 24 and 26 in Egypt.
Under Egypt’s election law, the winner needs to get the absolute majority of valid votes; otherwise, a runoff would be held at least seven days after the first vote.
The candidate who gets more than 50 per cent of the valid votes cast would be the winner and there would not be a runoff then, according to the election rules.
Egypt’s presidential election would go into a second round on June 16 and 17 if there is no outright winner, but that outcome seems unlikely given Al Sissi’s popularity.
Egypt’s Ambassador in the UAE, Wael Al Syed Gad, said the presidential election day was a chance for all Egyptians to show their love for Egypt.
“All of us love our country and today is the best time we can show our love for Egypt through action. No matter what political beliefs we have, maybe, now is the best time to start focusing on what each of us can do for Egypt, so that we can move forward to achieve progress faster,” the ambassador said.
He added love for Egypt is an invitation to all citizens and every citizen is showing it and doing it in the presidential election today.
“Most exciting is my learning from and working with Egyptian volunteers and cheerful voters who are casting their ballots for a brighter future to their country,” the he said.
Polling stations abroad are manned by diplomatic, consular and embassy administrative staff.
The whole expatriate voting process is monitored from an operations room at the headquarters of the Elections Committee in Cairo, said counsellor Ebrahim Lashin, chairman of the committee.
The expatriate vote is held in advance of the domestic ballot to allow the National Election Committee to remove the names of voters who have already cast their ballots abroad from the voters’ list, and to give sufficient time for foreign missions to count the votes cast and forward the results to the committee.
