Egyptians vote in second day of elections; turnout low

Washington Post ^ | June 17, 2012 | Leila Fadel and Ernesto Londoño

[SJackson]

CAIRO — Egypt entered its final day of voting on Sunday with very few people going to the polls to choose Hosni Mubarak’s successor under a cloud of apprehension and anticipation. Turnout appeared dismal in a sign of just how polarizing and demoralizing the choice between a military strongman and conservative Islamist is for the Arab World’s most populous nation.

The country’s military junta was expected to issue a constitutional decree within hours, according to the state’s Middle East News Agency, which would define the president’s powers. It would be a move that revolutionaries and the once-repressed Muslim Brotherhood condemned as a sign the military rulers continue to dictate rather than manage the transition to what Egyptians had hoped would be democracy.

On Saturday, Egyptians expressed wariness as they lined up in sweltering heat to vote in the runoff election for a replacement for ousted autocrat Hosni Mubarak.

In sharp contrast to recent elections, the mood in Cairo and across the country was largely tense as Egyptians contemplated the polarizing choice between Mohamed Morsi, a conservative Islamist, and Ahmed Shafiq, who was Mubarak’s last prime minister.

With the country’s lower house of parliament dissolved, the constitution suspended and the revolution pronounced all but dead, the outcome of the presidential vote that continues Sunday could not be more consequential.

[DeaconRed]

"with very few people going to the polls"

Maybe they voted yesterday, and they aren't like Chicago. They only vote once, not often. . . .

[SJackson]

Middle East and terrorism, occasional political and Jewish issues Ping List. High Volume

If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.

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[SunkenCiv]

Thanks SJackson, for this one too:

Muslim group in Egypt: “Eating tomatoes is forbidden because they are Christian”
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2896249/posts

[JSDude1]

Really hope Shafiq wins he’s the (much) better of the two-

Mubarak was our ally, plus hopefully the Copts, and other secularists/liberals (in the middle eastern sense) will fare better under him than the Islamist. Also would be better for Israeli-Egyptian relations I am thinking..