Muslim Brotherhood's Mohammed Morsi Declared Egypt's President
Muslim Brotherhood member Mohammed Morsi was on Sunday declared the first president of Egypt since a popular uprising ousted strongman Hosni Mubarak, the head of the electoral commission announced.
"The winner of the election for Egyptian president on June 16-17 is Mohammed Morsi Eissa al-Ayat," said Farouq Sultan, the commission's head.
Morsi, who ran against ex-prime minister Ahmed Shafiq, won 51.73 percent of the vote after a race that polarized the Arab world's most populous nation.
Shafiq received 48.27 percent of the vote, according to the electoral commission’s announcement.
Morsi won 13,230,131 votes against Shafiq who clinched 12,347,380.
The election, in which more than 50 million voters were eligible to cast their ballot, saw a 51.8 percent turnout.
Thousands of Egyptians packed into Cairo's iconic Tahrir Square to celebrate Morsi’s victory, waving flags and posters of the Islamist leader.
"God is greatest" and "down with military rule" they chanted as some set off fire crackers minutes after the election commission formally declared the result.
Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, head of the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, congratulated Morsi on his victory, state television said.
"Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi congratulates Dr. Mohammed Morsi on winning the presidency of the republic," the channel reported.
"The commission began its work in mid-February, but it was faced from the very beginning by a fierce campaign and treason accusations from the various political forces," said the head of the commission during the press conference.
"Some tried to question our work, some kept rejecting our decisions and some launched campaigns to pave the ground for accusing us of rigging the results should their candidate lose," he added.
The result was delayed following victory claims by both candidates that sparked tensions between the rival camps.
Anxiety swept over the capital, with some schools and shops closing early and people rushing to get home amid fears of unrest after the result.
Extra troops and police have been deployed across Cairo as military helicopters hovered above the city.
The road leading to parliament has been shut to traffic, and security measures have been put in place to protect vital establishments.
The interior ministry has put in place a massive security plan, officials told Agence France Presse, amid fears of unrest after the announcement.
On Saturday, two massive Cairo protests highlighted the duel between Morsi and Shafiq that has polarized the nation.
Thousands of Brotherhood supporters had gathered in Tahrir Square, with hundreds spending the night there.
Across the city, in the Nasr City neighborhood, thousands of Shafiq supporters held up pictures of him and of military ruler Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, chanting "the people and the army are one."
"Down with the rule of the Supreme Guide," they shouted, referring to the head of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Both Morsi and Shafiq have claimed victory in the election for a successor to Hosni Mubarak, with tensions deepening after the electoral commission delayed announcing the official outcome.
The huge security deployment in the capital is to prevent unrest when the result is announced, an interior ministry official told AFP.
The delay in announcing the result of the June 16-17 run-off, initially scheduled for Thursday, had raised suspicions that the outcome of the election is being negotiated rather than counted.
As the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) and the Brotherhood clashed publicly over recent measures that consolidated the army's power, privately they have been talking behind the scenes, sources told AFP.
On Friday, the SCAF warned it would deal "with utmost firmness and strength" with any attempts to harm public interests.
The Brotherhood warned against tampering with the election results, but also said it had no intention of instigating violence.
It has rejected a constitutional declaration by the military that strips away any gains made by the Islamist group since the popular uprising which forced Mubarak to stand down in February last year.
The document dissolves the Islamist-led parliament and gives the army a broad say in government policy and control over the new constitution. It was adopted just days after a justice ministry decree granted the army powers of arrest.
Those changes mean that even if Morsi wins, the Brotherhood is left with no parliament, no say in the constitution and a powerless president.
"It's a problem which we are trying to resolve," one Brotherhood official said.
The election has polarized the nation, dividing those who fear a return to the old regime under Shafiq's leadership from others who want to keep religion out of politics and who fear the Brotherhood would stifle personal freedoms.
Shafiq ran on a strong law-and-order platform, pledging to restore security and stability. He is himself a retired general, but as a Mubarak-era minister he is reviled by the activists who spearheaded the 2011 revolt.
Morsi is the Islamists' fallback representative after their deputy leader Khairat El-Shater was disqualified.
He has sought to allay the fears of secular groups and the sizeable Coptic Christian minority by promising a diverse and inclusive political system in Egypt.
Source: Agence France Presse, Naharnet
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