The Egyptian presidency will be contested by two contrasting candidates- former army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and former parliamentarian Hamdeen Sabahi.
According to the secretary-general of Egypt’s Elections Committee, Al- Sisi submitted 188,930 signatures endorsing his candidacy, and Sabahi presented 31,555.
Both candidates are the only two to enter the presidential race, the election committee said.
Three years after the uprising that overthrew autocrat Hosni Mubarak, Egypt is hoping to usher in a second democracy.
There will be no Islamist candidate in the presidential elections.
Egypt’s first election after the ousting of Mubarak was won by Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohamed Morsi whose reign was halted by the military.
On the entreaty of some Egyptians, Al-Sisi toppled Morsi, and subsequently quelled his supporters and members of the Muslim Brotherhood. Islamists, especially view Sisi as the architect of a coup.
Al-Sisi has not only suppressed Islamists, secular activists have also been politically consigned.
While many see al-Sisi as a saviour who can restore civility and order in Egypt, others consider him as a Mubarak-esque leader who would stifle the role of religious groups and opposition members.
Al-Sisi faces Sabahi, who finished third in the 2012 presidential elections behind Morsi and ex-air force chief Ahmed Shafik.
Sabahi, a popular politician who has the potential to rally support across Egypt, is running his campaign on the claim that Mubarak-era figures are making a comeback- in reference to al-Sisi.
Sabahi has argued that if Egypt elected al-Sisi the country would have failed to cleanse a “rotten” system or create a new breed of politicians.
Egypt’s next president will face an Islamist militant insurgency that has gained momentum following the ouster of Morsi and the suppression of the Muslim Brotherhood.
