Egypt's Court of Cassation heard an appeal on Monday, September 21, 2026, from parliamentary candidate Mohamed Zahran, known as "the people's candidate," to annul the results of the parliamentary elections in the Matariya constituency. Zahran's lawyers argued that the electoral process was marred by irregularities and errors in tallying and recording votes. The appeal concerns the rerun of the second stage of the parliamentary elections in the 10th constituency, which includes Matariya.
According to Zahran's defense team, the election process was flawed, with several irregularities reported. These included the prevention of the candidate's representatives from attending sub-committees and vote-counting processes, as well as the failure to provide them with tally sheets. The lawyers cited discrepancies between the number of voters announced by the general election committee and the actual number recorded in the sub-committees' tally sheets.
The defense team, led by Islam al-Dabaa, presented their arguments before the Court of Cassation. They claimed that on December 17 and 18, 2025, the parliamentary elections were held in the 10th constituency, with Zahran running as an independent candidate. The general election committee announced the results on December 19, 2025, revealing significant discrepancies between the announced numbers and the actual votes recorded.
The lawyers argued that these discrepancies contravene articles 40, 48, and 49 of Law No. 45 of 2014, which governs the exercise of political rights. They also stated that their client had submitted a complaint within the legal timeframe, on December 18, 2025, in accordance with Article 54 of the law. The article stipulates that the National Elections Commission must issue a decision on complaints within 24 hours.
Zahran's lawyers further argued that the National Elections Commission failed to provide detailed results, including the number of valid and invalid votes, as well as the number of votes each candidate received. They claimed that this lack of transparency contravenes Article 49 of the law, which requires the commission to provide candidates and their representatives with a copy of the tally sheets.
The defense team also pointed out that there were significant differences between the results announced by the general election committee and those recorded in the sub-committees' tally sheets. They argued that these discrepancies indicate that the vote-counting process was flawed, which impacted the integrity of the election.
Zahran's lawyers concluded their arguments by requesting the Court of Cassation to annul the election results in the Matariya constituency, citing serious irregularities and errors in the electoral process. They argued that these irregularities affected the outcome of the election and that the results announced by the National Elections Commission do not reflect the will of the voters.
Key points
- The Court of Cassation is hearing an appeal by Mohamed Zahran to annul the parliamentary election results in Matariya due to alleged irregularities.
- Zahran's lawyers argue that the electoral process was flawed, with several irregularities reported, including discrepancies in vote counting and a lack of transparency.
- The appeal concerns the rerun of the second stage of the parliamentary elections in the 10th constituency, which includes Matariya.
