Sisi, Musa to contest Egyptian presidential election

By Aydogan Kalabalik

CAIRO (AA) - President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Musa Mustafa Musa, head of the liberal Al-Ghad Party, will compete in Egypt's presidential election slated for March.

Egypt’s official electoral commission said in a statement early Wednesday that al-Sisi had the support of 549 members of parliament and Musa 20.

According to Egypt’s electoral laws, candidates must obtain the support of at least 20 members of parliament or at least 25,000 registered voters.

In a surprise move Sunday, Musa abruptly announced his intention to run in Egypt’s third presidential race since the 2011 popular uprising that forced autocratic President Hosni Mubarak to step down after three decades in power.

Last week, al-Sisi, who came to power in 2014 polls, became the first person to formally register his candidacy with the electoral commission.

Egypt’s presidential elections are scheduled to take place from March 26 to 28.

A former defense minister, al-Sisi spearheaded the 2013 military coup against Mohamed Morsi, Egypt’s first freely elected president and a Muslim Brotherhood leader.