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Egyptian polls see long lines
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The Associated Press
Shaking off years of political apathy, Egyptians turned out in long lines at voting stations Monday in their nation's first parliamentary elections since Hosni Mubarak's ouster, a giant step toward what they hope will be a democracy after decades of dictatorship.
The landmark election has already been overshadowed by turmoil in the streets over the past week, and the population is sharply polarized and confused over the nation's direction. Still, the vote promises to be the fairest and cleanest election in Egypt in living memory.
The Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's largest and best organized group, along with its Islamist allies are expected to do well in the vote, which has been a source of concern for secular and liberal Egyptians who fear the Brotherhood will try to implement a strict version of Islamic law in the country.
Early in the day, voters stood in lines stretching several hundred yards outside some polling centres in Cairo well before they opened at 8 a.m. local time, suggesting a respectable turnout. Many said they were voting for the first time, a sign of an enthusiasm that in this election one's vote mattered.
For decades, few Egyptians bothered to cast ballots because nearly every election was rigged in favour of Mubarak's ruling party, whether through bribery, ballot box stuffing or intimidation by police at the polls. Turnout was often in the single digits.
"I am voting for freedom. We lived in slavery. Now we want justice in freedom," said 50-year-old Iris Nawar as she was about to vote in the district of Maadi, a Cairo suburb.
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