Egypt: ElBaradei As An Independent

Mohamed ElBaradei, who previously indicated his willingness to consider running for the Egyptian presidency if the elections are free and fair, announced (Arabic) to al-Masry al-Youm that he would run only as an independent in Egypt’s 2011 elections. ElBaradei put an end to speculations by ruling out the possibility of him running on an opposition party platform. He stated that “entering the presidential election through a political party means I agree to the fake frame of political practices in Egypt and had granted this frame legitimacy, and that I agree to the current constitution, which lacks legitimacy because it does not allow about 95% of citizens the opportunity to run for president because political parties account for only 5% of the population.” ElBaradei added that he respects all the political parties, but as an independent man, he cannot enter the election except as an independent.
 
Meanwhile, many political forces in Egypt welcomed (Arabic) ElBaradei’s statements and demands as they described his political position as one that deserves respect and support. Ayman Nour said that “ElBaradei has the right to seek a position in the presidential race while retaining his independence, but he has no right to not seek or wait for change.” Nour added that ElBaradei’s announcement to fight for change and reform regardless of the upcoming elections makes them partners in this dream project. While Gamal Heshmat, a leader in the Muslim Brotherhood, indicated that the Brotherhood has been neutral with respect to all potential candidates because the picture is still not clear, he indicated that if the competition was between Gamal Mubarakand Dr. ElBaradei, then the “the balance will be in favor of the latter.” However, he added that ElBaradei might not be able to run in the coming elections because amending the constitution is not an option for the Egyptian regime. 
 
If ElBaradei were to run as an independent, he would need the backing of 250 elected representatives across both houses of parliament and local councils — all of which are dominated by Mubarak’s ruling National Democratic Party.