Khaberni - Minister of Local Administration, Walid El-Masri, expected on Saturday that an amended law for the Local Administration Law would be sent during February of next year, after completing the drafting and studying of the draft, and then sending it to the government and the Legislation and Opinion Bureau.
This was during the discussion by the Parliamentary Financial Committee of the budget of the Ministry of Local Administration within the Draft General Budget Law for the fiscal year 2026.
El-Masri pointed out that opinion polls showed that 65% of citizens prefer the appointment of mayors instead of their election.
Earlier, El-Masri confirmed to "Khaberni" that the draft law on Local Administration will be referred to the House of Representatives during the second regular session.
He said that according to the proposed draft law, the mayor and members will be elected by the citizens.
El-Masri added that the law will have "widespread debate" after its approval, especially since there are divisions in public opinion, indicating that according to a survey on participation in elections, the results showed that 55% of citizens do not want to participate in them.
He noted that the provisions of the law will need to be discussed inside the House of Representatives, and that a broad dialogue about them will be conducted.
El-Masri explained that once the House of Representatives completes the law, it will be sent to the Independent Election Commission to determine the date of the elections, expecting that the elections would take place in 2026, but the exact date depends on the readiness of the commission.
