Egypt: One Choice

EGYPT

One Choice

Henry Ford was famous for saying customers could have any color Model T they wanted, as long as it was black. Voters in Egypt were offered a similar choice in this week’s presidential election.

Incumbent President Abdel Fattah Sisi is headed to a landslide victory, winning some 90 percent of the vote based on unofficial tallies, the Los Angeles Times reported. But critics say the victory has come at the expense of legitimate democracy.

Sisi’s sole opponent — Moussa Mostafa Moussa – was a staunch supporter of the president. He only ran for form’s sake, and after learning he’d won only 3 percent of the vote told a local television station, “I am very happy with the experience, whatever the result.”

Earlier, three other potential rivals dropped out of the race, while a fourth was arrested and accused of running for office without permission, the BBC reported.

Despite concerns over such maneuvering, many Egyptians see Sisi as representing stability following the turmoil unleashed by the Arab Spring in 2011.