Egypt's Morsi begins
CAIRO — Egypt’s new president-elect, Islamist Mohammed Morsi, moved into the office once occupied by ousted leader Hosni Mubarak and started consultations today on forming his team and a new government, an aide said.
Morsi on Sunday was declared the winner of Egypt’s first free presidential election in its modern history, following a race with Mubarak’s last Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq.
Many supported Morsi as a representative of the uprising that toppled the old regime and a chance to challenge the military. But Morsi was equally feared among the youth groups behind the uprising, which campaigned for a secular democratic state, and among many of the country’s Christian minority. Almost half of the voters boycotted the runoff vote last weekend.
Now, he faces a daunting struggle for power with the country’s still-dominant military rulers who took over after Mubarak’s ouster in the uprising.
Just days before a winner was announced, the ruling generals made decisions that gave them sweeping powers, including passing the state budget.
The president-elect’s challenges include improving the economy and maintaining law and order. He has also promised he would nominate a non-Brotherhood member to head the government.
