Independent candidates Hesham Ashraf and Mustafa Saad on Monday won the seats of head and deputy head respectively of Cairo University's student union. Ashraf, a student in the Faculty of Urban Planning, reaped 20 votes, three more than his contender Ahmed Al-Nasharti, reported state-owned Al-Ahram. Ashraf ran for the elections independently, whereas Al-Nasharti ran on behalf of the Muslim Brotherhood student movement. Saad, a student in the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, won the elections with 21 votes, reported Al-Ahram. “Both Ashaf and Saad are considered part of the pre-revolutionary student union,” said Abdel Rahman Al-Hawary, the media spokesperson of the Muslim Brotherhood student movement in Cairo University. Al-Hawary had no comment regarding Ashraf's victory. Thirty-nine students took part in the elections on Monday, reported Al-Ahram. Out of 20 faculties in Cairo University, members of the Muslim Brotherhood student union were successful in only four faculties, reflecting a decline in their popularity. In Alexandria University, independent candidates won 58% of the student union faculty head seats, whereas candidates belonging to opposition student parties won 21% and Muslim Brotherhood movement students won 21% of the votes, according to statistics published by the Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression (AFTE). The Brotherhood student movement reaped all the student union faculty head seats at Al-Azhar University, according to AFTE. Both the head of the university student union and his deputy are from the movement. The Supreme Council of Universities banned partisan activities on university campuses last week. The decision prevents political parties from conducting activities or distributing propaganda within universities.
