Egypt expected to easily pass new charter

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Reports suggest most voted in favor of new constitution
• Muslim Brotherhood boycotted the poll
• Some suggested vote not held in democratic manner

CAIRO — Egypt's proposed new constitution, backed by the nation's military leaders, is expected to pass with overwhelming support from Egyptians who cast their ballots this week, according to initial unofficial results published in local news media.

The charter's passing, which would not come as a surprise since authorities are increasingly cracking down on dissent and many of those who opposed the document did not vote, would pave the way for upcoming fresh presidential and parliamentary elections.

Egyptians voted on Tuesday and Wednesday for the proposed new constitution, which was drafted by an appointed 50-member committee as part of a roadmap announced last summer by Egypt's army chief Gen. Abdel Fattah Al Sisi.

The commander overthrew the nation's first freely elected leader, Mohamed Morsi, last August in a summer coup after millions of Egyptians protested against Morsi's rule. The jarring political shift launched the nation on a new political path that included drafting a new ruling document and holding new elections.

According to data compiled by Ahram Online, an English-language news site, early incomplete and unofficial results indicated that 98% of voters in 25 administrative districts nationwide favored the proposed the charter. That doesn't include figures from North Sinai and Cairo.

Salah El-Sadek, chairman of the State Information Service, said he expects official results will be announced late Friday or Saturday.

The spokesman of the High Elections Commission could not be reached for comment.

Separately, an unnamed official told the Associated Press that more than 90% of voters said "yes" to the constitution.

Turnout in the vote is a key political factor, as many of those who opposed the proposed charter boycotted the poll, including supporters of Morsi and his group, the Muslim Brotherhood.

The Brotherhood was the country's most robust political movement following an uprising three years ago that ousted longtime dictator Hosni Mubarak. It is now outlawed and considered a terrorist organization by Egypt's authorities.

Authorities increasingly sought to silence opposition ahead of the vote and arrested some activists apparently for calling on Egyptians to vote "no" to the charter, Human Rights Watch reported.

The increasingly divided and repressive political climate provoked criticism that the poll was not held in a democratic environment.

"The fact that no one is really free to campaign against passage of the referendum is the first thing that tells you that it's an undemocratic atmosphere," said Michele Dunne, a senior associate in the Middle East Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

On the first day of the vote, 11 people were killed in bouts of violence after sporadic clashes erupted between protesters and police, the Health Ministry told the Associated Press. On Tuesday, a massive blast damaged a courthouse in North Giza. No deaths in the incident were reported.

The unrest didn't deter some voters from showing their support for both the proposed charter, and for army chief Al Sisi, who backed the document.

"We're supporters of Sisi and of this constitution," said Omnya Kamel, a resident of the Cairo neighborhood Dokki, as she stood outside a polling station Tuesday with her daughter. Both had bright red ink on their fingers, indicating they voted.

Others, however, contested the fairness of the poll.

"There's no real democracy," said Essam Haz, 29, who boycotted the vote. "The military kicked it in the head."