Egypt Sets Parliamentary Elections

Road to Cairo International airport, Cairo Egypt. (photo by Diaa Bekheet)

Egypt said Sunday it will conduct two-stage parliamentary elections in October and November, the first since then-military chief Abdel Fattah el-Sissi overthrew the country's first freely elected civilian President Mohamed Morsi two years ago and later was elected president himself.

Egypt has been without a legislature since June of 2012, when a court dissolved the democratically elected main chamber. President Sissi has passed dozens of laws by decree.

The country's election agency said the elections to fill seats in the 568-member parliament will start in mid-October, with half of the country's governorates voting, followed by voting in the remaining governorates in November.