Egyptians turn out in big numbers to vote on constitutional change

Referendum is first major test of transition to democracy in wake of Mubarak’s resignation

Hundreds of Egyptians line up at outside a polling station in Cairo, Egypt, to vote on constitutional amendments. Photograph: Amr Nabil/AP

Eager for their first taste of a free vote in decades, Egyptians lined up by the hundreds on Saturday to vote on constitutional amendments sponsored by the ruling military.
The nationwide referendum is the first major test of the country’s transition to democracy after a popular uprising forced Hosni Mubarak to step down five weeks ago, handing the reins of power to the military.
Early signs show an unusually big turnout, with lines forming in the hours before polls opened. They snaked along the streets in Cairo and other Egyptian cities, with men and women standing in separate lines as is customary in the conservative and mainly Muslim nation.
The vote promises to be the freest in Egypt since 1952 when the monarchy was ousted and the multiparty democracy that functioned under British colonial rule was ended. Egypt has since been ruled by men of military background, with fraud and extremely low turnout defining every nationwide vote.
“This is a historic day for Egypt,” deputy prime minister Yahya al-Gamal said after casting his vote in Cairo. “I had never seen such large numbers of voters in Egypt. Finally, the people of Egypt have come to realise that their vote counts.”
Voters were asked to choose yes or no for the whole package of nine changes, which would open elections to independent candidates, impose presidential term limits and curtail 30-year-old emergency laws that give police near-unlimited powers. Preliminary results will be announced on Sunday.
A yes vote would allow parliamentary and presidential elections to be held later this year or early in the next, a time frame that critics say is too soon for the dozens of political groups born out of the 18-day anti-Mubarak uprising to organise themselves and be able to compete in elections.
They say the timetable would benefit Mubarak’s one-time ruling National Democratic party (NDP) and the Muslim Brotherhood, the two most powerful and best-organised political groups in Egypt.
The NDP is blamed for the rampant corruption and fraud that marred every election in Egypt during Mubarak’s 29-year rule. The brotherhood, which has strongly campaigned for the adoption of the changes, advocates the instalment of an Islamic government in Egypt. The ambivalence of its position on the role of women and minority Christians worry large segments of society.

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