He gained over 96% of the vote with ballots² from most polling stations counted, state media say.

 

Turnout is expected to be around 45% despite a massive push to get more people to polling stations. Many groups boycotted⁴ the vote.

 

Mr Sisi deposed⁵ President Mohammed Morsi last July after mass protests.

 

He has overseen⁶ a bloody⁷ crackdown on Mr Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood⁸ movement in which more than 1,400 people have been killed and 16,000 detained.

 

Democracy campaigner Nagy Kamel: "I don't believe these are real elections"

 

The Brotherhood said it would boycott³ the vote, as did many liberal and secular⁹ activist¹⁰ groups.

 

Hamdeen Sabahi, the only other candidate in the election, said earlier his team had recorded "violations¹¹" in the voting process.

 

However, he rejected calls from his supporters to withdraw from the elections, saying it was not in the interest of Egyptians.

 

Mr Sabahi secured only about 760,000 of the 24.7 million votes counted, and lost out in many regions to a high number of spoiled ballots, the state-run al-Ahram newspaper reports.

 

Hundreds of Sisi supporters took to the streets of Cairo in the early hours of Thursday as results emerged, waving Egyptian flags, setting off fireworks and honking¹² their car horns.

 

The military-backed authorities had extended voting to a third day in the hope of boosting turnout.

 

But reports suggested many polling stations were almost deserted¹³ on Wednesday.

 

Analysts¹⁴ say the low turnout damages Mr Sisi's authority before he takes office.

 

He had aimed to win 40 million of 54 million registered votes, to show that he had the support of the majority of Egypt. In the event, it appears about 25 million voted.

 

In comparison, turnout for the previous presidential election between Mohammed Morsi and former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq was around 52%.

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