Egypt’s Sisi sweeps to victory in presidential vote

CAIRO: Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the general who toppled Egypt’s first freely elected leader, swept to victory in a presidential election, provisional results showed on Thursday, joining a long line of leaders drawn from the military.

But a lower than expected turnout figure raised questions about Sisi’s credibility after his supporters had idolised him as a hero who can deliver political and economic stability.

Sisi captured 92.2 percent of votes cast in more than 50 percent of polling stations, judicial sources said. His only rival, leftist politician Hamdeen Sabahi, gained 3.8 percent while 4.2 percent of votes were declared void.

Fireworks erupted in Cairo when Sisi’s results began to emerge. His supporters waved Egyptian flags and sounded car horns on the crowded streets of the capital.

About 1,000 people gathered in Tahrir Square, the symbolic heart of the popular uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak in 2011 and raised hopes of a democracy free of influence from the military. Sisi supporters honked car horns and waved flags.

Dancing dolls dressed in army fatigues quickly went on sale in Tahrir, a reminder of the army’s wide influence in Egypt.

Sisi is the latest in a line of Egyptian rulers from the military that was only briefly broken during Islamist President Mohamed Morsi’s year in office.

Sisi, who ousted Mursi last year after mass protests against his rule, is seen by supporters as a strong figure who can end the turmoil that has convulsed Egypt since the revolution that ended Mubarak’s 30 years in power.

But critics fear he will become another autocrat who will preserve the army’s interests, and quash hopes of democracy and reform aroused by the protests that swept Mubarak.

Sisi enjoys the backing of the powerful armed forces and the Interior Ministry, as well many politicians and former Mubarak officials now making a comeback.

“We are joyful because Sisi got so many votes, the results will come after an hour, we are here to celebrate,” said Kawther Mohamed, who went to Tahrir with her daughters.