In a surprising decision, Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court (SCC) ruled on June 2 that the Shura Council, currently the country’s only functioning legislative body, and the Constituent Assembly, which drafted the December 2012 Constitution, are unconstitutional. The ruling, however, is of little immediate impact, as in its judgment, the court authorized the Shura Council, the upper house of parliament, to remain seated until the election of a new People’s Assembly, the lower house of the legislature. The date of that election is yet to be decided as the electoral law is still being amended.
The court found that the electoral law under which the Shura Council was elected violated the principles of equality and non-discrimination because party members were allowed to contest the two-thirds of seats reserved for parties as well as the one-third of seats allotted for independents. The judgment is in accord with the SCC’s legal reasoning for dissolving the People’s Assembly in June 2012.