Harare — Egypt's presidential election will now be held in December 2023, rather than in the Spring of 2024 as previously planned. President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who is highly likely to remain in power, announced the plan as the country faces pressure from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to devalue their currency in order to access bailout funding.
The loan agreement, which the IMF approved in December 2022, provided Egypt with the equivalent of $3 billion over about four years to help the government meet its Budget and balance of payments. Experts had predicted that Sisi would move forward the 2024 election in order to avoid tensions from an expected switch to a flexible exchange rate. The IMF also reported that Egypt was feeling "major ripple effects from higher food and energy prices" as it imports about 80% of its wheat from Russia and Ukraine, as well as seeing visitor spending shrink because it is a popular tourist destination for both.
Across the political spectrum, Sisi's presidency is characterized by a crackdown on dissent. Egypt's largest liberal opposition political organisation declared that it will not nominate a candidate for the 2024 presidential election after one of its leaders was sentenced to six months in prison in September. Hisham Kassem reportedly considered running for president before he was found guilty of slander and verbally assaulting a police officer - charges that his supporters say were politically motivated.
A higher court will hear Kassem's appeal on October 7, while the case draws renewed global attention to the country's poor human rights record.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) wrote in its World Report 2023 that the Egyptian government failed to alleviate the ongoing campaign of repression against critics in 2022 or abolish laws restricting fundamental freedoms. The government also launched a national dialogue that was supported by the president and hosted the COP27 UN climate summit in November in a bid to "whitewash the country's image without implementing crucial reforms".
"Egyptian authorities' use of criminal defamation laws to muzzle critics like Hisham Kassem is just one of myriad tools they use to ensure that critical speech leads straight to prison," said Amr Magdi, senior Middle East and North Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch.
The rights watchdog slammed President Joe Biden administration's decision to provide nearly the full amount of military funding to Egypt disregarding the government's ongoing repressive policies, while Amnesty International reported that the authorities intensified their prosecution of civil society.
Constitutional changes made in 2019, which increased the presidential terms from four to six years, means 68-year-old Sisi is eligible to run for a third term. If successful in December's polls, he will be in power until at least 2030. Despite not publicly declared his candidacy, pro-government groups started a campaign to support Sisi's re-election that includes billboards throughout Cairo.
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Securing 97% of the vote in both the 2014 and 2018 elections, he was declared the victor. He only faced one opponent in 2018 after the primary competitor was detained and other contenders withdrew due to intimidation.
Sisi apparently still has the support of the security agencies, most notably the army. This is after the former army chief led the toppling of the Muslim Brotherhood's democratically elected leader Mohamed Mursi in 2014, and was elected president of Egypt.
During the 2011 Arab Spring demonstrations, Sisi, then head of the army, said that the measures were necessary to restore stability and open the door for economic growth. Activists said that since 2013, tens of thousands were imprisoned, many without having received fair trials, and that the crackdown persists.
Four more candidates had declared their intentions to run in this election, most notably former lawmaker Ahmed Eltantawy, who said security forces have detained some of his friends and prevented him from organizing campaign rallies.
Election results are anticipated to be announced on December 18, according to the electoral authority, and, in the event of a run-off, final results should be announced no later than January 16.
