The President

The President of the Republic is the head of State and the head of executive power. He shall care for the interests of the people, safeguard the independence of the nation and the territorial integrity and safety of its lands, abide by the provisions of the Constitution, and assume his authorities as prescribed therein. The President of the Republic shall be elected for a period of four calendar years, commencing from the day following the termination of the term of his predecessor. The President may only be once. The procedures for electing the President of the Republic shall be initiated at least one hundred twenty days prior to the end of the presidential term. The result must be announced at least thirty days prior to the end of such term. The President of the Republic may not hold any partisan position throughout his presidential term.

A presidential candidate must be an Egyptian born to Egyptian parents, and neither he or his parents or his spouse may have held any other nationality. He must enjoy civil and political rights, must have performed the military service or have been exempted therefrom by law, and shall not be less than forty calendar years of age on the day of commencing candidacy registration. Other requirements for candidacy shall be set out by Law. To be accepted as a candidate for the presidency, candidates must receive the recommendation of at least twenty elected members of the House of Representatives, or support from at least twenty five thousand citizens enjoying the right to vote, in at least fifteen governorates, with a minimum of one thousand supporters from each governorate.  In all cases, no one can support more than one candidate as regulated by Law.

The President of the Republic shall be elected by direct secret ballot, with an absolute majority of valid votes. Procedures for electing the President of the Republic are regulated by Law. As a condition for assuming his duties, the President of the Republic shall take the following oath before the House of Representatives: “I swear by The Almighty God to loyally uphold the republican system, respect the Constitution and the Law, fully uphold the interests of the People and to safeguard the independence of the nation and the integrity and safety of its territories.” In case of the absence of the House of Representatives, the oath shall be taken before the General Assembly of the Supreme Constitutional Court.

The salary of the President of the Republic shall be determined by Law. The President may not receive any other salary or remuneration. No modification to the salary may come into effect during the presidential term during which it is approved. Throughout his presidential term, the President may not, whether in person or by proxy, be self-employed, engage in commercial, financial or industrial activity, buy, rent or lease any property owned by the state or by a public-law legal person, or a public enterprise sector company, sell or barter any part of his own property with the State, or conclude a contract with the State as a vendor, supplier, contractor or otherwise as set out by Law. Any of such acts shall be void.  The President must submit a financial estate disclosure upon taking office, upon leaving it, and at the end of each year of service. Such financial estate disclosure is to be published in the Official Gazette. Throughout the presidential term, the President of the Republic may not award himself any orders, decorations or medals. In case the President of the Republic receives, in person or by proxy, a cash or in-kind gift because of or in connection with the presidential office, title thereto shall devolve to the State public treasury.

The President of the Republic shall assign a Prime Minister to form the government and introduce his/her program to the House of Representatives. If his government does not win the confidence of the majority of the members of the House of Representatives within thirty days at the most, the President shall appoint a Prime Minister who is nominated by the party or the coalition that holds the majority or the highest number of seats in the House of Representatives. If the government of such prime minister fails to win the confidence of the majority of the members of the House of Representatives within thirty days, the House shall be deemed dissolved, and the President of the Republic shall call for the election of a new House of Representatives within sixty days from the date on which the dissolution is announced. In all cases, the total periods for choice of government set forth in this Article shall not exceed sixty days. In case the House of Representatives is dissolved, the Prime Minister shall present to the new House of Representatives the formation of his government and its program, at its first session. In the event the government is chosen from the party or the coalition that holds the majority or the highest number of seats in the House of Representatives, the President of the Republic shall, in consultation with the Prime Minister, choose the Ministers of Defense, Interior, Foreign Affairs and Justice.

The President of the Republic may relieve the government from carrying out its duties, subject to the approval of the majority of the members of the House of Representatives. The President of the Republic may conduct a cabinet reshuffle after consultation with the Prime Minister and approval of the House of Representatives by an absolute majority of the members present, which must not be less than one third of its members. The President of the Republic may delegate some of his powers to the Prime Minister, his deputies, ministers, or governors. None of them may delegate such authorities to others. All of the foregoing shall be regulated by Law.

Jointly with the Cabinet, the President of the Republic shall set the State's General Policy and oversee its implementation as stated in the Constitution. The President of the Republic may deliver a statement on the State's General Policy before the House of Representatives at the opening of its annual regular session. The President may deliver other statements or address other messages to the House.

The President of the Republic shall represent the State in its foreign relations and conclude treaties and ratify them after the approval of the House of Representatives. Such treaties shall acquire the force of law following their publication in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution. Voters must be called for referendum on the treaties related to making peace and alliance, and those related to the rights of sovereignty. Such treaties shall only be ratified after the announcement of their approval in the referendum. In all cases, no treaty may be concluded which is contrary to the provisions of the Constitution or which results in ceding any part of state territories.

The President of the Republic shall appoint and dismiss civil and military employees and political representatives and accredit political representatives of foreign States and bodies in accordance with the Law. After consultation with the Cabinet, the President of the Republic may declare the state of emergency as regulated by Law. Such declaration must be presented to the House of Representatives within the following seven days to decide thereon as it deems fit. If the declaration takes place while the House of Representatives is not in regular session, the House must be invited to convene immediately in order to consider such declaration. In all cases, the declaration of the state of emergency must be approved by a majority of the members of the House of Representatives. The state of emergency shall be declared for a specified period not exceeding three months, which may only be extended for another similar period after obtaining the approval of two-thirds of the House members. In case the House of Representatives has not been elected, the matter shall be referred to the Cabinet for approval provided, however, that it is presented to the new House of Representatives at its first session.  The House of Representatives may not be dissolved while the state of emergency is in force.

After consultation with the Cabinet, the President of the Republic may issue a pardon or reduce a sentence. General amnesty may only be granted by virtue of a law, ratified by the majority of the members of the House of Representatives.  In case an event which requires taking urgent measures, which cannot be delayed, occurs while the House of Representatives is not in session, the President of the Republic shall call the House for an urgent meeting to present the matter thereto. If the House of Representatives has not been elected, the President of the Republic may issue decrees having the force of law, provided that they are then presented to, discussed and approved by the new House of Representatives within fifteen days from the commencement of its session. If such decrees are neither presented nor discussed by the House, or if they are presented but not ratified thereby, their force of law shall retroactively be revoked without need for issuing a decision to that effect, unless the House confirms its effectiveness during the previous period or decides to settle the consequences thereof.

Without prejudice to the provisions of the Constitution, the President of the Republic may call for a referendum on issues relating to the supreme interests of the State. In case a call for referendum involves more than one issue, voting must be made separately on each issue. The President of the Republic may submit his resignation to the House of Representatives. If the House has not been elected, he shall submit the same to the General Assembly of the Supreme Constitutional Court.

Accusing the President of the Republic of violating the provisions of the Constitution, treason or any other felony must be based on a motion signed by at least the majority of the members of the House of Representatives. The indictment shall only be issued by the majority of two-thirds of the members of the House of Representatives and after carrying an investigation by the Prosecutor General. In case the Prosecutor General is prevented from same, he shall be replaced by one of his assistants. As soon as this indictment is issued, the President of the Republic shall be stopped from carrying out his duties; this is considered as a temporary impediment precluding the President from performing his competences until a verdict is issued in the case. The President of the Republic shall be tried before a special court headed by the President of the Supreme Judicial Council with the membership of the most senior deputy of the President of the Supreme Constitutional Court, the most senior deputy of the President of the State Council, and the two most senior Presidents of the Courts of Appeal; prosecution is to be carried out before such court by the Prosecutor General. In case one of the aforementioned persons is prevented from serving, he shall be replaced by the person following him in seniority. The court verdicts shall be final and not subject to appeal. The Law shall regulate the investigation and trial procedures. In case of conviction, the President of the Republic shall be relieved of his post without prejudice to any other penalties.

In case the President of the Republic is temporarily prevented from assuming his powers, the Prime Minister shall act in his place. If the President of the Republic's office becomes vacant due to his resignation, death, or permanent inability to work, the House of Representatives shall announce the vacancy. If such vacancy is attributable to any other reason, such announcement shall be made by a majority of at least two thirds of the members of House of Representatives. The House of Representatives shall then notify the National Electoral Commission, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall temporarily assume the powers of the President of Republic. In case the House of Representatives has not been elected, the General Assembly of the Supreme Constitutional Court and its Chairman shall replace the House of Representatives and its Speaker with respect to the above. In all events, a new President must be elected within a period not exceeding ninety (90) days as of the date of vacancy. In such a case, the presidential term shall start as of the date of announcement of the election results. The interim President may not run for presidency or request any amendment to the Constitution or dissolve the House of Representatives or dismiss the Government.

The House of Representatives may propose to withdraw confidence from the President of the Republic and hold early presidential elections upon filing a reasoned motion to be signed by at least the majority of the members of the House of Representatives and upon approval of two-thirds of its members. The motion may only be filed once for the same reason within the presidential term. Upon approval of the proposal to withdraw confidence, the matter of withdrawing confidence from the President of the Republic and holding early presidential elections shall be put to public referendum to be called by the Prime Minister. If the majority approves the decision to withdraw confidence, the President of the Republic shall be relieved from his office, the office of the President of the Republic shall be deemed vacant, and early presidential elections shall be held within sixty (60) days as of the date of announcing the results of referendum. If the result of the referendum is in the negative, the House of Representatives shall be deemed dissolved, and the President of the Republic shall call for election of a new House of Representatives within thirty (30) days as of the date of dissolution.

The Prime Minister shall be an Egyptian citizen born to Egyptian parents and neither he/she nor his/her spouse may hold the nationality of any other country, shall enjoy civil and political rights, shall have been drafted into or legally exempted from the military service, and shall be at least thirty five (35) Gregorian years of age at the time of appointment. As a condition for assuming their duties, the Prime Minister and members of government shall take the following oath before the President of the Republic: “I swear by Allah, the Almighty, to loyally uphold the republican system, to respect the Constitution and the law, to fully uphold the interest of the People, and to safeguard the independence of the nation and the integrity and safety of its territories.”

The salary of the Prime Minister and the members of government shall be defined by Law, and they may not receive any other salary or remuneration, nor engage, throughout the term of their respective offices, whether in person or through an intermediary, in self-professions, or commercial, financial or industrial business activities. Further, they shall not buy or rent any property owned by the state or a public legal person or a public sector company, or a public enterprise sector company, nor lease or sell any of their property to, or barter the same with the State, nor conclude a contract with the State as vendors, suppliers, contractors or otherwise. Any such actions shall be deemed null and void. The Prime Minister and the members of government shall submit a financial estate disclosure upon taking office, upon leaving the same, and at the end of each year of service. The financial estate disclosure shall be published in the Official Gazette. If the Prime Minister or any of the members of government receive cash or in-kind gifts, because of or in relation to their posts, the ownership thereof shall transfer to the State's treasury. The foregoing shall be regulated by Law.