Two pharaohs for one throne

Mohammed Morsy - Freedom and Justice Party (Muslim Brotherhood)

Mohammed Morsy, 61, a former member of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Guidance Bureau, was an elected MP between 2000 and 2005. He holds a PhD from the University of South California, where he briefly taught. In April 2011, Morsy became the head of the Freedom and Justice Party, the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood.

The Brotherhood, which initially refused to present a candidate, endorsed Morsy as its official presidential hopeful after Khairat al-Shater, an Islamist political activist, was disqualified from the race on April 14.

Morsy’s camp did not wait for the official election results to cry victory, declaring their candidate the winner the day after the June 17 presidential runoff.

Ahmed Shafik – Independent

Ahmed Shafik, 71, is an apparatchik. A former chief of staff in the Egyptian Air Force (1996-2002), he briefly held the job of prime minister from January 29, 2011 to March 3, right at the time former president Hosni Mubarak stepped down.

Failing to appease the street protests, Shafik handed his resignation to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces on the eve of a major anti-government demonstration. His candidacy was met with suspicion by the opposition, which sees him as a man of the old regime.

Following the example of the Muslim Brotherhood, Shafik declared himself the winner of the presidential election on June 18, three days ahead of official results from the electoral commission.