High turnout expected at polls: ambassador Egyptians crowd at embassy grounds in Kuwait to cast their vote in general electionsKUWAIT CITY, March 17: Members of the Egyptian community in Kuwait flocked to the Egyptian Embassy in Kuwait early Saturday to cast their votes on the second day of the 2018 Egyptian presidential elections. The voting process will continue until 9 pm or until the last participant has cast his/her vote.The Egyptian Ambassador to Kuwait Tarek Elkouny said the second day witnessed a large number of Egyptians, including youth, elderly people, men and women at the embassy amidst a wonderful family and festive atmosphere with everyone expressing keenness to do their national duty and singing patriot songs.The ambassador revealed that the participation of a 92-year woman reflects an amazing picture for the female voters, and depicts her keenness to do her national duty and set a good example for encouraging Egyptian voters to practice their constitutional rights. He said he expected a high turnout at the embassy on all three days of the election process, as well as an increase in the numbers during the evening hours.The National Elections Authority (NEA) held a press conference on Friday during which it announced that Kuwait is one of the countries with more number of voters. Regarding this announcement, the Egyptian Ambassador said, “This is natural. The Egyptian community in Kuwait is always topping. We hope the process goes on like this until the end”. He revealed that process of sorting out the votes shall be carried out immediately after the end of the election process, and the results shall be sent to the NEA to be included in the final results.Al-Seyassah daily held interviews with some Egyptian voters who affirmed their keenness to cast their votes for the sake of the future of their homeland, which experiences hard times and challenges mainly in combating terrorism. They said they are confident that President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi will win the elections this time to complete the huge projects he has been executing in the past four years, about which the whole world is fully aware of. According to KUNA, the election was first launched on Friday, March 16, with the Egyptian Ambassador to Kuwait Tarek Elkouny being the first to cast his ballot. It will continue until Sunday.The ambassador said the embassy took all necessary arrangements and preparations for a smooth voting process in the presidential race. He appreciated security authorities in Kuwait for their efforts and help in organizing the voting process at the embassy. The Egyptian government particularly Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made proper preparations and arrangements for Egyptian expatriates to cast their votes during the three-day period from March 16 to March 18 at 139 polling stations in 124 countries worldwide.However, Syria, Libya, Yemen and Somalia will not witness any voting process for the Egyptian presidential elections due to ongoing security circumstances. The Egyptian government urged its overseas citizens to participate in the third presidential race since the January 25, 2011 Revolution, which ousted former president Hosni Mubarak. Earlier, on Feb 24, NEA announced the final list for Egypt’s upcoming presidential election. It consists of only two candidates – the incumbent President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi and Al-Ghad Party leader Mousa Mustafa. In 2017, the government estimated the total number of Egyptians living abroad at 9.4 million. Around 60 million eligible voters in Egypt will cast their ballots in the election on March 26-28, while expatriates will vote on March 16-18 at 139 polling stations abroad.By Shawki Mahmoud Al-Seyassah Staff and Agencies