Early signs suggest that Morsi leads first round of Egyptian election

At the close of polling on the second day of Egypt’s presidential election, the early signs are that Muslim Brotherhood candidate Mohammed Morsi has the lead. Independent Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh is in second place.

As on the first day of the two-day election, turnout was high; the government had declared a public holiday to encourage voters to take part. Observers for the Rights and Citizenship Centre for Studies and Field Surveys put Morsi’s share of the vote at 25.8 per cent. Of the other candidates, Aboul Fotough polled just over 23 per cent; Ahmed Shafik got 20.7 per cent, followed by Amr Moussa and Hamdeen Sabbahi with 11.3 and 9.5 per cent respectively.

The observers said that 4.7 per cent of the group surveyed – made up of 1,627 voters from five major governorates (Cairo, Alexandria, Sharkia, Ismailia and Aswan) – voted for other candidates; 1.4 per cent spoiled their ballot papers.

Egyptian Prime Minister Kamal El-Ganzori told the media that the high turnout is unprecedented. He stressed the integrity and transparency of the electoral process.