There's Another Important Presidential Election

There is another Presidential Election that Americans should be following. Of course, we all acknowledge that the US Presidential Election is the one that will shape the future of the planet most profoundly. But another Presidential Election is coming up the end of May and this one will shape the future of the Middle East and accordingly, the planet.

This important election is happening in Egypt. It is the first ever multi-candidate race that promises to be free, fair and transparent.

Unlike the race in America, the timeline for Egypt’s contest is short. Beginning back on Saturday, 10 March, candidates could begin registering their names. This registration, now ongoing, requires hopeful candidates to complete several forms to provide basic personal information including financial disclosures. Each potential candidate must also have either the support of 30 members of the Peoples’ Assembly; or signed and notarized recommendation forms from 30,000 Egyptian citizens including some who reside in each of the governorates; or be the nominee of his/her political party. It turns out that whichever option the hopeful candidate chooses, it is a rigorous process, not without pitfalls! The registration process will end on 8 April at 2:00 PM.

Nevertheless, on Monday, 9 April, an initial list of candidates and the names of the citizens, MPs, or the political party that recommended them will be released. Then the campaigning will begin. Just 45 days later, 23 and 24 May, Egyptians go to the polls! Actually, campaigning has already begun as hopeful candidates seek to complete the registration process and the media speculate on the possibilities and analyze the possible outcomes.

The speculation on the results is already in high gear. There are fears of back room deals between the Muslim Brotherhood and the SCAF (military leaders). Candidates who might be good presidents find themselves tainted by association with overthrown dictator, Hosni Mubarak. The generational divide between Egypt’s significant population of under thirty voters and their elders has added complexity to prognostications.

Egyptian political analyst Moustafa Kamel al-Sayed has argued that the entire political scene is blurred in a way that makes it very hard to guess who the next president might be. Sayed, who is also a professor of political science at Cairo University, argued that many analysts overlook the fact that Egypt has never really been through presidential elections and that is why it cannot be compared to countries with long-established democracies. (Al-Arabiya News, 21 March, 2012)

According to Ahramonline, 22 March, 2012, "The leadership of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood will reportedly discuss the possibility of nominating a presidential candidate at a group meeting scheduled for Friday. Some observers say the move is indicative of a political dilemma for Egypt's largest and most influential Islamist group." They report "...expelled member and presidential contender Abdel-Moneim Abul-Fotouh is finding significant support from among the Brotherhood’s young cadres, and that his overall popularity appears to be growing, even among Coptic-Christian quarters." For more, go to

http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/7/37419/Egypt/Presidential-elections-/In-a-corner,-Muslim-Brotherhood-mulls-presidential.aspx

All of this points to high drama as the Campaign unfolds. We will update our readers in future posts, Stay tuned!