Cries of fraud after claims Egypt voted ‘yes’ on constitution

The Muslim Brotherhood, the main group backing the charter, claimed it passed with a 64 per cent “yes” vote. Official results have not been released yet and are expected today.

If the unofficial numbers are confirmed, it will be a victory for Islamist president Mohammed Morsi.

The allegations look likely to prolong the struggle that has exploded in deadly street violence at times over the past month.

“The referendum is not the end game. It is only a battle in this long struggle for the future of Egypt,” said the National Salvation Front, the main opposition group.

“We will not allow a change to the identity of Egypt or the return of the age of tyranny.”

The opposition claims the new constitution seeks to enshrine Islamic rule in Egypt and accuses the Islamists of trying to monopolise power.

Critics say it does not sufficiently protect the rights of women and minority groups and empowers Muslim clerics by giving them a say over legislation. Some articles were also seen as tailored to get rid of Islamists’ enemies and undermine the freedom of trade unions.

The opposition front said it filed complaints to the country’s top prosecutor and the election commission asking for an investigation. It said the results of the referendum are suspect “because of the rigging, violations and mismanagement that characterised it.”

However, the Brotherhood insisted violations were limited and should not affect the referendum’s integrity.

The Freedom and Justice Party, the Brotherhood’s political arm, said it hoped the passage of the constitution would be an “historic opportunity” to heal Egypt’s divisions and launch a dialogue to restore stability and build state institutions.

If the violations are considered serious enough, there could be new votes in some areas that alter the results slightly.

The referendum was conducted in two stages with the first vote on 15 December and the second on Saturday. The Muslim Brotherhood and some media outlets have accurately tallied the outcome of past elections by compiling numbers released by electoral officials at thousands of individual polling stations shortly after voting closes.

Turnout for the vote was 32 per cent of Egypt’s more than 51 million eligible voters, according to the Muslim Brotherhood. That was significantly lower than other elections since the uprising ended in February 2011. The opposition has pointed to the low turnout as well as allegations of violations in the voting to cast doubt on the legitimacy of the referendum.

The Brotherhood said 64 per cent voted “yes” to the constitution in a tally of both stages of voting. For Saturday’s second stage only, the Brotherhood said 71 per cent of those who voted said “yes” with 99 per cent of polling stations accounted for.

As expected, it was a jump from the first round of voting when about 56 per cent said “yes”. The provinces that voted in the second round were known for being a base for Brotherhood supporters.

Meanwhile, a Cairo court has decided it will rule on the appeal of former president Hosni Mubarak on 13 January. The move could lead to Mubarak being retried over the killing of protesters last year.

Mubarak and former interior minister Habib al-Adli were sentenced to life in prison in June after a court ruled they were responsible for the deaths of around 850 people who were killed when security forces tried to quash an uprising.