Published Date: 2025-05-02 19:59:54 Updated At: 2025-05-02 19:59:54

The journalist Khaled El-Balshy has won the position of head of the Journalists Syndicate once again, after defeating his main opponent, journalist Abdel Mohsen Salama, the former chairman of Al-Ahram and a member of the Supreme Council for Media Regulation, in the elections held today, Friday, at the syndicate's headquarters.

This year's elections for the Journalists Syndicate, which witnessed a large turnout from the members, marked a historical precedent in the number of voters, surpassing 6,000 members—an unprecedented figure. The election results showed that Khaled El-Balshy received 3,346 votes, or 55.3%, while Abdel Mohsen Salama obtained 2,562 votes.

The votes were distributed across several voting committees, with El-Balshy gaining a noticeable advantage in most of them. In Committee 1, El-Balshy received 162 votes, compared to 107 votes for Salama. In Committee 3, El-Balshy again prevailed with 160 votes, while his opponent received 101 votes. In Committee 5, El-Balshy secured 175 votes, while Salama had 96 votes.

The results also showed El-Balshy maintaining his lead in many other committees, such as Committee 6, where he received 148 votes compared to 117 for his opponent, and in Committee 12, where he got 138 votes compared to 126 votes. In Committee 13, however, El-Balshy and Salama were nearly equal, with El-Balshy receiving 135 votes and Salama receiving 128 votes.

El-Balshy continued to dominate in several other committees, such as Committee 14, where he earned 119 votes compared to 105 for Salama, and in Committee 17, where he received 140 votes while Salama had 114 votes. Committee 19 also showed a clear advantage for El-Balshy, who received 127 votes compared to 96 for Salama. This dominance was confirmed in Committee 21, where El-Balshy gained 136 votes versus 99 for his competitor, and in Committee 22, where El-Balshy received 148 votes compared to 106 votes for Salama.

In Committee 23, despite the strong competition between El-Balshy and Salama, El-Balshy managed to achieve a lead with 168 votes compared to 150 for Salama.

The election results also recorded a few invalid votes, totaling three in Committee 14, and two invalid votes in Committee 19. Invalid votes were also registered in Committee 23.

The committee overseeing the elections announced the final voting results after the counting process, confirming that the total number of voters exceeded 6,000 members, with 6,051 votes cast, reflecting an unprecedented level of participation by the syndicate members in this election.

After the announcement of El-Balshy's victory, the Journalists Syndicate received this achievement with much support and celebration, as many journalists and colleagues expressed their support for this outcome. El-Balshy, in his statements following his victory, confirmed that he would continue to work on strengthening the syndicate’s role in defending journalists' rights and improving their professional and social conditions.

It is worth noting that Khaled El-Balshy, the newly elected head of the syndicate, has a distinguished record in journalism. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Journalism from the Faculty of Mass Communication at Cairo University. He started his professional career at Rosal-Youssef Magazine from August 1998 to March 2005. He then worked as Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Al-Dostor Newspaper from 2005 to July 2006, before becoming Editor-in-Chief of Al-Badeel from October 2007 to September 2012. He later worked as Editor-in-Chief of Al-Bidaya Newspaper for 10 months from October 2012 to July 2013. He then assumed the role of Editor-in-Chief of Al-Wadi News Portal for five months from October 2014 to February 2015, before returning as Editor-in-Chief of Al-Bidaya for two years and ten months from April 2015 to January 2018.

These elections are part of a large reform process within the Journalists Syndicate, amid the professional challenges faced by the press in Egypt, emphasizing the crucial role of the syndicate in defending press freedoms and promoting independent and free journalism.