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Snapping of a little kid out the polling station [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

Snapping of a little kid out the polling station

People snap a photo of an Egyptian toddler carrying an Egyptian flag outside a polling station in Egypt's Presidential elections 2018


Voting girl 2018 : Egypt's Presidential Elections summary 2018

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Another dispatch from Cairo, the land of pharaohs and elections.
Earlier Friday, Egypt’s National Elections Authority “NEA” announced that no one has presented any appeal or objection against the elections.
Thus on 2 April, the NEA will announce Current president Abdel Fattah El-Sisi as the winner of the 2018 presidential race in the non-surprising news.
According to the unofficial preliminary results leaked from the NEA and Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s official campaign, the current president comes in the first place by 92% of the votes, the spoilt votes in the second place by 5% and Moussa Moussa in the third place by 3%.
Estimations of the turn out speak about over 40% of eligible votes “59 million votes”
This is the second consecutive presidential elections in a row to have the spoilt vote in the second place.
In the 2014 Presidential elections between Sisi and Hamdeen Sabhi, also the spoiled votes came in the second place by 4.07%
Needless to say, the fact that we have spoiled votes more than El-Sisi’s opponent in the Presidential elections say a lot especially  with all the attempt to mobilize people to head to the polling stations
At 9 PM Wednesday, Egyptian Presidential elections 2018 concluded in a dramatic way as the NEA extended it for another hour whereas a huge sandstorm was hitting the country.
Snapping a photo for mom in Egypt's Presidential elections 2018
A lady snapping a photo of her old mother casting her vote in the presidential elections 2018
This post includes my testimony on the second day and third day as well a more detailed day one of the Egyptian presidential elections 2018.
The first post about the Egyptian presidential elections is brief as I was tired and God knows that I am still tired thanks to our dusty Egyptian spring and sinusitis.
You can see a very short summary of that election in the video here. It is too short and I mock how the mainstream media covered the elections. It is different as you can than previous reports about elections since 2011.


First of all, I did not vote in the Egyptian presidential elections 2018 because it is actually a referendum.
It is a setback to the old days and continuing old tradition of the 99.999% yes to the leader referendums that started in the days of Nasser.

Ironically I would have voted if the regime let other candidates like Ahmed Shafik or Sami Anan or Khaled Ali run without dirty games.

I did not vote and I am ready to pay that LE 500 fine now the“NEA” has just announced earlier Wednesday as a fine in order to force the eligible voters to show up at the polling stations.
The fine for not showing up to vote does exist in the 2014-Presidential elections law yet that article no.43 does not speak about the mechanism on how to apply that fine in the first place.
The NEA’s threat comes as an indirect official announcement that the turnout in Presidential elections 2018 is low as expected.
Presidential Candidate Moussa Moussa at a Polling Station in Egypt's presidential elections
Moussa Moussa speaking to AFP reporter in French after casting his vote in a Downtown Cairo polling
station 
While covering the Presidential elections, I saw presidential candidate Moussa Moussa who is currently speaking of becoming the leader of opposition in Egypt.
The thing is that he had never opposed El-Sisi let alone is popular enough among any group to become the leader of opposition in the country.
It is another sad affair when you think about it.

The first two days already witnessed a noticeable turn out of elderly people in the poll station. It also witnessed that unneeded atmosphere of festivities
In the first day of the elections, I only saw young people that I can count on my hand.

Egyptian voters at a polling station in Egypt's Presidential elections 2018
Those three young ladies were the first young people I had seen in the first days of the elections

From what I read the third and last day witnessed a moderate turnout from all ages and not from the elderly only.
The declining turnout is not a surprise to me or others but what was astonishing is how the Egyptian officials went too far to encourage high turnout in what can be considered as electoral violations.
The governor of Qalyubia announced on Tuesday a-LE 100,000 to the church or eparchy with the highest turnout “more than 40%” in the Presidential elections.
In other words, he wants the Egyptian Orthodox Church and other Churches in his governorate to mobilize their members to vote !!
State resorts to religion for a high turn out !!

Choosing her president at a polling station in Egypt's Presidential elections 2018
A nice old Christian Egyptian lady voting in the presidential elections. She came alone 
 I think this shows the Christian Egyptians were not so encouraged to vote for Abdel Fattah El-Sisi like what Robert Fisk claimed in his column in the Independent last week !!

Governor Mahmoud El-Ashamawy did not forget Muslim voters in his governorate as he declared also that he would award the counties and villages with the highest turnout with Umrah trips !!!
The former army general was met with his huge criticism as well rejection from the Orthodox Church itself. The Diocese of Shobra El-Khaima slammed the governor indirectly in a statement issued on its official Facebook page on Wednesday.
“The Church has never accepted rewards for its service,” said the statement adding that the Church was doing its religious, educational and patriotic role from “its heart”
Christian Egyptian activists and politicians also slammed him.
On Thursday he backtracked what he said about the reward to churches and eparchies.
Back on Tuesday, many governors followed the governor of Qalyubia but without a reward to Churches like for instance.

Mounfia governorate announced on Wednesday a-LE 350,000-reward for counties and cities as well a-LE 150,000-reward for the village with the highest turnout in the Presidential elections on condition that their turnout would not be less than 40%. Those rewards will be allocated to raise the standards of infrastructure services in those towns, counties and villages !!
As you can see this is not an individual act from one governor but several governors.
I did not include here the rest of the links that speak about the rest of the governorates.
Unofficially, there had been several initiatives by Pro-regime businessmen that cannot be ignored. Like the LE 4 million reward allocated by pro-regime businessman Hassan Ratab and a group of businessmen to the village with the highest turnout in the Presidential elections !!

Those LE 4 million are to be allocated to the infrastructure projects in that lucky village !!
I think it is the role of the Egyptian government and Egyptian president to provide the citizens with those services without any return.
Needless to say, some people especially Pro-regime MPs resorted to old techniques.
A local DJ outside a polling station in Egypt's Presidential elections
Very young men seen dancing on DJ music seen too often in those elections
A little birdy told me who is better kept anonymous that MP Abdel Rahim Ali promised on Saturday to give old ladies especially in the poor class areas in Agouza and Dokki bags of food supplies if they had gone and voted in the Presidential elections. The inked finger was the proof that they went to vote.
This is not encouragement to vote, this is an electoral bribe and taking advantage of people’s poverty.
Similar testimonies are showering the internet for real and yet the government and NEA kept a blind eye on what happened.

In fact, I am reading now about a young man filmed electoral bribes who was arrested after he was attacked by infamous TV host Ahmed Moussa. I am trying to find the video.
My little birdy also told me that the MP also hired unemployed young men and ladies for LE 500 to work as cheerleaders outside the polling stations in the area.

That explained why I and others saw on the first-day of the elections young ladies and men wearing “Long Live Egypt” dancing and cheering with noisy DJs for no reason for real right beside the polling stations.
What shocked me was those of young ladies were actually underage girls dancing in the middle of the street.
I saw that in Agouza, Dokki, Downtown Cairo.
Other saw it and filmed in El-Rehab in New Cairo as well in other governorates including Port Said !!
Again the fact that that was seen in several areas in Egypt confirms that there was some kind orchestration.
I do not know how young girls dancing in the streets while carrying flags of Egypt can attract voters !!
Anyhow this what I have seen, read and heard in Egypt’s Presidential elections 2018.
FYI on Thursday, calls have started to amend the Egyptian constitution to allow El-Sisi to run for eternity and beyond.
Egyptian women voters in Egypt's Presidential elections 2018
That lady in the Middle asked me to photograph her and those nice old ladies whom she did not know
at the polling station

Al Masry Al Youm’s fine : Again Journalism is not crime.

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Sunday afternoon, Egypt’s High Media Council fined Daily Al Masry Al Youm “AMAY” LE 100,000 for allegedly publishing misleading news as referring its editor in chief and one of the reporters to an investigation at the Journalists Syndicate in Cairo.
The High Media Council which is led by veteran pro-regime journalist Makram Mohamed Ahmed also ordered the newspaper to apologize to the National Elections Authority in the daily newspaper itself.

All that happened because AMAY published on its first page in the edition of Wednesday’s issue a news with the headline saying the following in Arabic ( الدولة تحشد الناخبين اخر ايام الانتخابات) or “The state mobilizes the voters in the last day of the elections”.
AMAY
The issue with the headline that caused trouble
It seems the headline and the news itself did not like some VIPs did not like the title or the news because the AMAY editorial team decided to change to remove from the first page as well the AMAY’s website and its cache !!
Late on Wednesday, AMAY’s editor in chief as well its Presidential correspondent Mohsen Smika declared his resignation on his official Facebook in a short post.


Matters have reached to a dark tunnel , as political stances and not profession stances are being forced on AMAY , the latest stance was its headline on Wednesday’s first edition. Thus I declared my resignation from AMAY
Some think that Smika was slamming the regime but h actually is slamming the publishers of the newspaper, above them Salah Diab and his son.
One look to Mohsen Smika, you will know that the man took the side of ‘the state’
On Thursday, Egyptian Prosecutor General ordered an investigation with AMAY editor in chief for insulting the Egyptians !!

When I searched, I found that notorious Samir Sabry filed a legal complaint with AMAY editor in chief for insulting the Egyptians and state institutions with that statement !!

Al Masry Al Youm has not committed anything wrong in its headline on Frontline because in Arabic it described perfectly what the Egyptian government was doing from attempting to mobilize the public into voting !!
The governors in several governorates were doing so with all those rewards to the village and county as well city with the high turnout !!
This is called mobilizing in English and (حشد) in Arabic !!

The AMAY should not have changed its first page or apologized but it seemed that there was an extreme pressure on the privately owned newspaper.
Either way, this is not a good sign for press freedom or media freedom at the end of El-Sisi’s first Presidential term and the start of his second presidential term.
It is not a big secret that the freedom of expression as well the media in general in the past four years in an unprecedented way.
Mubarak was smart enough to a margin of freedom of expression and journalism in the county so people can vent their anger.
Journalism is not a crime .. period.

Egypt’s Presidential elections 2018 in graph : Let the numbers speak facts

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On Monday, Egypt’s National Elections Authority announced the final and official results of the March Presidential elections 2018.
Incumbent President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi was elected unsurprisingly in a landslide victory with 97% of the valid votes in a-41.5%-turnout.

His rival, the leader of Ghad Party Moussa Moussa got2.92%  of the total votes.
For the second presidential elections in a row, the spoilt votes come in the second place right after Sisi with1,762,231 votes or 7.27% of the total votes.
It is worth to mention that the number of eligible voters increased from 53,909,306 in Presidential elections 2014 to become 59,078,138 normally.

Now the NEA, Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Pro-regime media are claiming that there was a huge turnout thanking Egyptians inside and outside for once again proving to the world that they supported the current president.
Ballot boxes at a polling station in Egypt's Presidential elections 2018
Inside an Egyptian presidential elections polling station in Giza 
Well numbers, the official numbers released by the NEA says a different story; especially when compared with presidential elections 2014 and presidential elections 2012 which were released by NEA’s predecessor the High Elections committee
Let’s see my dear readers what the official numbers say.

First of all
Here is El-Sisi Vs. Moussa’s graph


You can see Moussa Moussa got very tiny percentage comparing to El-Sisi which is unsurprisingly considering what happened in those elections and how he ended up standing against him.
Presidential Candidate Moussa Moussa at a Polling Station in Egypt's presidential elections
Moussa Moussa voting for photographers waiting for after voting in the Presidential elections in March
The number of votes Moussa Moussa has got actually were smaller comparing to Hamdeen Sabbahi who is a well-known politician in Egypt unlike him and he actually presented a true show and a true fight as much as he could.


Sabbahi got 757,511 votes "3.1%" when Sisi got 23,780,104 votes  "96.1%" in Presidential elections 2014 when Moussa Moussa only got 656,534 votes "2.92%" and Sisi got 21,835,387 votes "97.08%" in Presidential elections 2018.
Ironically Hamdeen Sabbahi was among the opposition figures in Egypt that wrote on their social media accounts one word when the NEA was announcing the results of the elections on air.
That word was "Liars".
Sabbahi and his allies from Civil Democratic Parties declared that they would boycott those elections already. They called the public to boycott as well but honestly, the public did not need any call.

Now moving to the spoilt votes, the real competitor growing in front of Abdel Fattah El-Sisi in both elections.
As I mentioned earlier Moussa Moussa came in the third place after the Spoilt votes and Abdel Fattah El-Sisi from the total votes in Egypt in 2018. The same thing happened in 2014. The percentage increased only.



This is the highest record for the spoilt in the Egyptian Presidential elections since we have had the Multi-candidate system in 2005 if I am not mistaken. Also, it is the first time, Egyptians choose a footballer as a rival to an incumbent president. 

There are local and international news reports that people were forced to vote by orders from the managers and superiors in companies, hotels, schools and factories in the last day of the Presidential elections.
Egyptian Facebook page "Al-Mawkaf Al-Masry" has published so far 8 posts with videos and testimonies from its readers showing elections violations including elections bribes and forcing citizens to go and to the election (1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8)
The NEA has stated that there had been no violations reported in those three days of Presidential elections in March.
The NEA also stated that the number of eligible votes has increased yet the numbers show a decline in the total votes and correct votes but on the other hand a rise in the spoilt votes from 2012 elections to 2018 elections.


This means the turnout has declined from 2012 to 2018. The media campaign encouraging citizens to votes and warning them not to votes did not work as the local pro-regime media claimed or hoped.



The Egyptian Pro-regime media had been cheering for the Egyptian expats' turnout claiming that it was huge.
An Egyptian voter, an Upper-middle class Middle aged man I met on the first day of the Presidential elections was feeling sad that the turnout of the Egyptian voters inside Egypt was not that high like the Egyptian expats.
Well, I do not think that he shouldn't feel sad because the turnout of Egyptian expats in the Egyptian Presidential elections 2018 is actually compared to the last two multi-candidates presidential elections we have had according to official numbers.


I could not go deeper into the Presidential elections 2018's numbers when it comes to the breakdown in the governorates because those numbers above are saying enough.
We are on the verge of returning back to Mubarak's days when the Egyptian people used to boycott the ballot boxes in a silent protest without any social media because they know there is no use and it is only a charade
They only go to the polling stations when they feel that there is a true hope for change.
They stand in long queues for that hope for hours with no complaints.
I think the world knows that.
The world saw that in 2011 and 2012.

Seen in Cairo : Tahrir's Cleopatra hotel renovated

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Cleopatra hotel in Cairo

Seen in Cairo: Cleopatra Hotel in Cairo’s Tahrir square which is under current renovation according to what I have read today.
Surprisingly and contrary to what I thought, Cleopatra hotel is not closed and is actually operating.It has got a page in booking.com.
Inaugurated in 1962, it has got 82 rooms according to its profile in its mother company EGOTH.
The State-owned tourism company is leasing the hotel to an Egyptian-Saudi company called "Arkan" to operate it.

Cleopatra hotel
The hotel luggage label in the 1960s
Cairo Observer once spoke about it and its very curious case among the hotels in Downtown Cairo. 
It is true that it looks like a-1960s modernist governmental building but I can't deny that I like its side -name thing.
It is worth billions of Egyptian pounds now with its location in the most famous square in Egypt. I see there is a lot of potential in it. 

Flowers at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018 [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

Flowers at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018

Flowers at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018

The visitors of Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

The visitors of Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair

The annual Spring Flowers Fair was packed full of visitors especially in the days of the weekends.

Elections campaigning at Egypt's Spring Flowers Show 2018 [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

Elections campaigning at Egypt's Spring Flowers Show 2018

Taken before Presidential elections in late March , the annual Spring Fair Show was not spared fro Elections campaigning as companies and flower nurseries show their support to incumbent President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi


The Orman botanical garden partition at Egypt's Spring Fair 2018 [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

The Orman botanical garden partition at Egypt's Spring Fair 2018

First time to notice that Orman botanical garden has got a partition at the annual spring show offering its production from plants and flowers to sale to public

At the entrance of Egypt's Flowers Fair 2018 [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

At the entrance of Egypt's Flowers Fair 2018

At the entrance of Egypt's annual Spring Flowers show 2018 in Giza's Orman botanical garden

Elections campaigning and flowery arcs at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018 [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

Elections campaigning and flowery arcs at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018

A banner calling Egyptians to vote in the March presidential elections and flowery arcs at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018

A mother Selfie at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018 [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

A mother Selfie at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018

A mother tries to take a selfie with her uninterested children at the annual Spring Flowers Fair

An Egyptian family at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018 [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

An Egyptian family at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018

A Conservative Egyptian family taking a photo to remember at Egypt's annual Spring Flowers Fair

Decorative trees at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018 [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

Decorative trees at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018

Small decorative trees at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018

A selfie with an illusion at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018 [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

A selfie with an illusion at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018

An Egyptian college student taking a selfie and behind her an illusion fountain at a partition of a landscaping company in the annual Spring Flowers Fair 2018


Ministry of education's partition at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

Ministry of education's partition at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair

First time to see the ministry of education got a partition at Egypt's annual Flowers fair

Mints at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018 [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

Mints at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018

Pots of mints "Chocolate mint and Syrian mint" at the annual Spring Flowers Fair

Beautiful flowers at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

Beautiful flowers at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair

Beautiful flowers "which I do not know its name" at Egypt's Flowers Fair.

Taking a quick nap at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018 [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

Taking a quick nap at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018

An old gardener taking a quick nap in the shade at one of the partitions at Egypt's annual Spring Flowers Fair

Purple daisies at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018 [Flickr]

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Kodak Agfa posted a photo:

Purple daisies at Egypt's Spring Flowers Fair 2018

Purple daisies at the annual Spring Flowers Fair at Orman botanical garden.

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