The Future of Egypt through the Public’s Eyes

Egyptians are voting in today’s presidential election run-off, only days after the Egyptian Supreme Constitutional Court dissolved the democratically-elected parliament on Thursday. The country has been on edge in the lead-up to today’s elections. Two weeks ago, ex-President Hosni Mubarak was sentenced to life in prison, sparking mass protests and opening old wounds.

Egyptians go to the polls today to choose between two candidates that are in many ways diametrically opposed to each other. The Freedom and Justice Party’s candidate Mohamed Morsi, who is affiliated with the once banned Muslim Brotherhood, is facing off against an old face from Mubarak’s former regime – ex-Prime Minister Ahmed Shafik.

Reactions among Egyptians are mixed on the court’s ruling to dissolve the parliament, and questions remain about how the presidential election will be affected by it.

Norman Emad, an Egyptian activist, explained that despite the fact that the parliament was democratically elected many Egyptians had not felt connected to it and were consequently unfazed by the court’s ruling.

“This action may affect the election, but not in a major way. This will not cause a second revolution, for the parliament did not represent the people enough. People are not responding in a big way because it is not a big deal,” said Emad.

Mohamed, another young Egyptian activist, was slightly more pessimistic about Egypt’s future and saw the presidential elections as a litmus test of Egypt’s political transition. While people did not take to the streets in massive numbers to protest the parliament’s dissolution, he explained that, “Most people here are so mad about this, and are afraid that the elections will not end well.”

But despite the worries, Mohamed thinks that the court ruling will help voters make up their minds on election day. “People will be more in favor of Morsi, and won’t trust Shafik. It is easier to deal with Morsi than Shafik. We can talk about what we need to make revolutionary achievements with Morsi, but Shafik is just like Mubarak.”

While it is yet to be seen which way the votes will go, or whether low voter turnout will delegitimize the election, Mohamed explained that Egyptians are “afraid of election fraud in favor of Shafik. SCAF supports Shafik as president, but he was not part of the revolution.”

Unlike Emad, Mohamed believes that Egypt can potentially erupt into a second revolution. “People won’t accept Shafik. The revolution might start again.”

Tunisia Live will continue to track any election developments as they become available.