Egypt deploys tens of thousands of troops for election

Egypt has deployed tens of thousands of policemen and soldiers to protect polling centers across the country as Egyptians vote to elect their president for the next four years.

President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi’s victory is a foregone conclusion. His only challenger is Moussa Mustafa Moussa, a little known politician who joined the race in the last minute to spare the government the embarrassment of a one-candidate election after several hopefuls were forced out or arrested.

Authorities hope enough people — there are nearly 60 million eligible voters — will vote in the three-day balloting that started on Monday to give the election legitimacy.

Sissi cast his ballot as soon as the polls opened at 9 a.m. at a girls’ school in the Cairo suburb of Heliopolis. Local TV stations showed festive scenes outside polling centers, with women and school children singing.

— AP