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Symbolic election

Egypt's weird political symbols

By Holly Pyne

28 November 2011

The way Egypt denotes its political candidates is nothing if not unique.

Since the 50s, Egypt has used symbols to represent its political parties and candidates, originally in order to help illiterate voters identify the party they wanted to vote for.

And as it goes to the polls, today’s historic vote is no exception, with 250 symbols in use, from Viking boats to umbrellas, each assigned to a prospective MP and then given to them at random by the Supreme Elections Commission.

But some candidates are not happy. One MP in a district of Cairo has been given the symbol of a lady’s dress (he deems it ‘humiliating’). Others are unhappy at being given symbols depicting weaponry given the country’s former military rule, overthrown by the uprising in February this year.

Elsewhere, there are symbols of digital cameras, cookers, and in one case, a hoover. The assigned candidate is expected to clean up… (really, just so very sorry).

(Click pics to enlarge)