Egypt referendum strongly backs constitutional changes

Egyptians have voted overwhelmingly in favour of constitutional reforms which will allow the country to move quickly to elections, according to official results released Sunday evening.

Egyptians waiting to vote in the constitutional referendum, Cairo 19 March 2011 AFP/Messinis

Just over 77 per cent of voters in Saturday’s referendum endorsed nine amendments including the reduction of presidential terms from six to four years and the introduction of a limit of two presidential terms. 

Another amendment restores full judicial supervision of the electoral process, which was scrapped in 2005.

Approximately 18 million Egyptians went to the polls on Saturday, a 41 per cent turnout. For many Egyptians Saturday was the first time they had ever voted.

Under former President Hosni Mubarak elections were fraud-plagued, stage-managed affairs with turnout as low as 10 per cent on some occasions.

Presidential candidates Mohammed El Baradei and Amr Moussa called for voters to oppose the changes, saying they did not go far enough.