This is the first set of elections following the toppling of President Hosni Mubarak, and similar tallies are being conducted in Morocco and Tunisia. Moderate Islamist parties are gaining immense ground in these countries amid a wave of political discontent from the downfall of the previous “democratic” governments.
The first round of voting, part of a complex, multi-step process, will pick the members of the lower house of parliament. According to preliminary results, the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party won around 40 percent of the total votes cast.
Secular groups were not taken aback by the result but expressed surprise at how some long time secular candidates fared. However, many of these candidates were members of Mubarak’s old National Democratic Party, a possible reason for their poor showing in the polls.
The military, which has ruled — and heard many protests themselves — since the overthrow of the government, announced presidential elections to replace the ousted Mubarak for next June.
By Sami Pathan
