Egypt’s President, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, has secured another six-year term with an overwhelming 89.6% of the vote, as announced by the election authority on Monday.
The voter turnout reached a record high at 66.8%, with over 39 million Egyptians participating in the election held between December 10 and 12.
Sisi, a former army chief who has governed the most populous Arab country for the past decade, faced competition from three relatively unknown candidates. Hazem Omar, leader of the Republican People’s Party, emerged as the runner-up with 4.5% of the vote.
READ ALSO: Priests Can Now Bless Same-Sex Relationships -Says Pope Francis
Farid Zahran, head of the left-leaning Egyptian Social Democratic Party, and Abdel-Sanad Yamama from the century-old but relatively marginal Wafd party followed in the results.
With this victory, Sisi is poised to enter his third and constitutionally mandated final term in office, commencing in April.
Despite Egypt grappling with its severest economic crisis and heightened tensions surrounding the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza, Sisi’s win was anticipated.
The country has witnessed a significant economic downturn, with the currency depreciating, annual inflation at 36.4%, and rising prices for essential food items, exacerbating challenges for households. Even before the current economic crisis, a substantial portion of Egypt’s nearly 106 million population lived on or below the poverty line.