Egypt Pushes Elections Back

Egyptian General Mamduh Shahin, a spokesman of the transitional military government, speaks during a press conference in Cairo on March 30, 2011 to announce that a new president will be elected by November. (Khaled Desouki/Getty Images)

By Alex Johnston

Alex Johnston

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March 30, 2011Updated: October 1, 2015

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The Egyptian military interim government, Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), announced on Wednesday that they will push official elections from August to September and November. Parliamentary elections will take place first, then the presidential vote will follow.

The election will be conducted using different rules than when Mubarak was in power to encourage more competition for “stability and development,” Reuters reported. Amendments to the constitution were approved via popular referendum on March 19. Under the new rules, the presidential terms will be limited to two, four-year terms. Mubarak had ruled Egypt for 30 consecutive years.

Gen. Mamduh Shahin said that the military council will hand power over to Parliament and the new president when they are elected. The military has been ruling as an interim government since Mubarak was ousted on February 11.

Candidates for the top office include human rights proponent and former nuclear watchdog chief Mohamed ElBaradei, and Arab League Secretary-General Amr Mussa.