Violations seen in parliamentary elections largely eliminatedAccording to election consultant Ossama Kamel, fewer abuses have occurred in this vote than in the parliamentary poll that ended in January, partly because of lessons learned then.He predicted a last-minute rush to the polls on Thursday, with voting time extended, perhaps for several hours."We have seen a lot better control of campaigning on election day than during the parliamentary vote when there were lots of violations, with candidates and their supporters hustling people outside polling stations," he told Reuters.The vote marks a crucial stage in a turbulent army-led transition racked by protests, violence and political disputes. The generals who took charge when Mubarak was ousted on Feb. 11, 2011, have pledged to hand over to the new president by July 1.Even then the army, whose grip reaches deep into government and the economy, is likely to wield influence for years to come. A tussle over who should write the constitution also means the new president will not know his own powers when he is elected.Independent lawmaker Amr el-Shobaki says the president's election marks the start, not the end, of Egypt's transition."Fifteen months in the life of this nation were wasted in anarchy, randomness and unprecedented poor performance that means it is still searching for a way into the interim period," he wrote in Al Masry Al Youm newspaper.With no reliable opinion polls, the presidential race is wide open, a pleasant change for Egyptians accustomed to the routinely forged votes of Mubarak's 30 years in power.The Muslim Brotherhood said Mursi was ahead after the first day of voting. Moussa's campaign also put Mursi in the lead with its candidate second. Their estimates could not be confirmed."This is the first time we can really choose our president and no one will mess with the result," said Ahmed Shaltout, a 36-year-old lawyer who said he would vote for Mursi.Explaining why he favored Moussa, Mohamed Salem, a shopkeeper near the Pyramids, said: "I want security and prosperity like before. We in the tourism sector were the most hurt. We could not count the number of tourists coming into our shops every day. Now we hardly need our fingers to count them."
Egyptians back at the polls to pick president
Muslim Brotherhood says its candidate, Mohamed Mursi, ahead after first day of voting, Moussa campaign concurs.
Violations seen in parliamentary elections largely eliminatedAccording to election consultant Ossama Kamel, fewer abuses have occurred in this vote than in the parliamentary poll that ended in January, partly because of lessons learned then.He predicted a last-minute rush to the polls on Thursday, with voting time extended, perhaps for several hours."We have seen a lot better control of campaigning on election day than during the parliamentary vote when there were lots of violations, with candidates and their supporters hustling people outside polling stations," he told Reuters.The vote marks a crucial stage in a turbulent army-led transition racked by protests, violence and political disputes. The generals who took charge when Mubarak was ousted on Feb. 11, 2011, have pledged to hand over to the new president by July 1.Even then the army, whose grip reaches deep into government and the economy, is likely to wield influence for years to come. A tussle over who should write the constitution also means the new president will not know his own powers when he is elected.Independent lawmaker Amr el-Shobaki says the president's election marks the start, not the end, of Egypt's transition."Fifteen months in the life of this nation were wasted in anarchy, randomness and unprecedented poor performance that means it is still searching for a way into the interim period," he wrote in Al Masry Al Youm newspaper.With no reliable opinion polls, the presidential race is wide open, a pleasant change for Egyptians accustomed to the routinely forged votes of Mubarak's 30 years in power.The Muslim Brotherhood said Mursi was ahead after the first day of voting. Moussa's campaign also put Mursi in the lead with its candidate second. Their estimates could not be confirmed."This is the first time we can really choose our president and no one will mess with the result," said Ahmed Shaltout, a 36-year-old lawyer who said he would vote for Mursi.Explaining why he favored Moussa, Mohamed Salem, a shopkeeper near the Pyramids, said: "I want security and prosperity like before. We in the tourism sector were the most hurt. We could not count the number of tourists coming into our shops every day. Now we hardly need our fingers to count them."