Four Egyptians Run for Local Belgian Elections For First Time

Four Egyptians are on the official list to run in Belgium’s municipal elections today, October 14^th.

These elections will be structured through 19 municipalities in Brussels; five provinces and 300 municipalities in Flanders; five provinces and 262 municipalities in Wallonia.

In an statement with Al-Masry Al-Youm, one of the Egyptian candidates stated that this would mark the first time in history that four Egyptians have run for any foreign country’s elections at once.

He also stated how connections as a translator has opened doors for him; reeling in offers for spots on lists of nominees in the election from several parties. He ultimately decided on aligning with a third party, which he affirms has good chances of progressing in the elections.

Mohamed Omar, an Egyptian electrical engineer, has been chosen by the center-right Dutch-speaking Liberal Democrats (Open VLD) to be the fourth candidate on their list.

Running on the Greens’ lists is Egyptian citizen Walid Abdulrahman, while the fourth candidate, Ayman Ghizlan, is running via his membership at the Socialists Party in Lokeren.

Egyptians are not the only non-Belgians to compete. The race also includes Iraqis, Algerians, and Indians running for the first time as well as the Turks and Moroccans, who have had established a steady standing on the Belgian electoral scene.

Main image from EU Rentals