Parties have accelerated time in the last 24 hours to replace those excluded from the race:
The political parties and free lists participating in the upcoming local elections are entering the final 24 hours of the legal deadline allocated to succeed disqualified candidates, amid data indicating the exclusion of current mayors, their deputies, and members of the elected councils from the nomination lists, which would open the way for new faces to appear in the upcoming municipal and state councils for the first time, and change the composition of a number of councils, some of whose names remained present during previous terms.
According to the data obtained by “Al-Shorouk” from the circle of parties concerned with participating in the election, the succession process is still ongoing among the political formations, as they are racing against time to complete the compensation of the excluded names before the expiration of the legal deadlines set on October 28 of this year, allowing them to adjust their electoral lists in anticipation of the final stage of preparation for the upcoming local elections.
At a time when parties face the challenge of compensating candidates whose files were rejected, succession circumstances vary from one political formation to another, between parties affirming their readiness to complete the process without difficulties, and others still awaiting the outcome of the judicial appeals filed by disqualified candidates, in light of the short deadline remaining to resolve the lists.
In this context, Faisal Ghams, a member of the political bureau of the National Liberation Front Party, confirmed in a statement to Al-Shorouk that the process of replacing the excluded candidates at the party level is ongoing, and will continue in the coming hours, indicating that his political formation did not face difficulties in replacing the names in question, given the presence of a large number of those wishing to run under the party’s banner and run in the upcoming local elections.
Ghams explained that “Al-Aflan” anticipated this stage by preparing reserve lists at the level of all municipalities, in anticipation of the rejection of the files of some candidates, allowing it to compensate for the excluded names and ensuring the continuation of its electoral participation at the level of the relevant municipalities and state popular councils, without the rejection decisions affecting the completion of its lists.
On the other hand, some files are still awaiting clarification of the outcome of the judicial appeals, which was confirmed by the media official at the Socialist Forces Front, Rachid Chiabi, who explained in a statement to “Echorouk” that the party is continuing the process of replacing candidates whose names dropped from its lists, whether it is related to the municipal or state popular council elections.
Chiappi added that, until his statement, the party had not received court responses regarding the appeals filed by the candidates concerned with the rejection decisions, which keeps the status of some files linked to the outcome of these procedures, while continuing preparations to compensate the excluded names within the specified deadlines.
Aside from the race for succession that political formations are engaged in in recent hours, Al-Shorouk data reveals another aspect of the electoral scene, related to the exclusion of a number of elected officials who hold local positions during the current term, including mayors and their deputies and members of the elected councils, which may be reflected in the composition of future councils, especially in municipalities that have known cases of blockage during the current term.
The departure of these names from the nomination lists places the parties before the need to search for alternatives capable of competing in the electoral competition, at a time when the absence of a number of the current elected members gives an opportunity for new candidates to enter the local councils, which may lead to changes in the human map for managing local affairs, especially in municipalities that have witnessed disputes or difficulties in the performance of the outgoing councils.
The challenge before the political formations is not limited only to replacing the excluded names, but extends to ensuring that their lists remain compliant with the legal requirements, and maintaining their presence in the largest possible number of municipalities and states, especially since any stumble in completing the nomination procedures may affect their ability to run for eligibility in some areas.
