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Controversy Swirls Over Egypt Vote
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Wednesday's election was a step in the Mubarak government's own plans to open up politics to some extent, albeit with the levers of power still held by the National Democratic Party, currently dominated by the president's son Gamal and a group of Western-oriented technocrats. They contend that reform in Egypt must be calibrated to avoid unrest that would upset free-market economic liberalization, another project spearheaded by Gamal Mubarak.
Mohammed Kamal, a member of Gamal Mubarak's advisory team, said reform plans include changes in the constitution to transfer some presidential powers to parliament and scale back emergency laws that have inhibited free speech for a quarter-century. "Our message is that we are creating a platform for change," he said in an interview.
It is unclear when the emergency laws might be lifted. Bush administration officials have pressed for them to be amended before the parliamentary vote, but President Mubarak has resisted, senior U.S. officials said.
As Mubarak has made gains, so have his political rivals. Nour, leader of a free-market party that was legalized only last October, has quickly became a prominent opposition force. Mubarak government officials were preoccupied Thursday with the possibility that Nour might have come in second in Wednesday's balloting. Some were openly rooting for Noman Gomaa, 71, the candidate of the established Wafd Party, to be the runner-up.
Wafd spokesman Mahmoud Abaza predicted the party would make a strong showing in the parliamentary vote. "The bottom line is that, the NDP aside, there are only two other political forces: Wafd and the Muslim Brotherhood."
The Brotherhood, which is officially banned from politics but is widely regarded as Egypt's largest opposition force, benefited from the months leading up to the election, said Aly Abdel Fattah, an official of the Brotherhood. Nour and Gomaa visited Brotherhood leaders to solicit support. The Brotherhood issued an anyone-but-Mubarak order to its followers. Members were widely interviewed on Arabic-language satellite television. "We were participants. We got our membership familiar with the workings of elections," said Abdel Fattah, who added: "The Brotherhood plans to run front candidates in the parliamentary vote."
Wright reported from Washington.
