Islamist set to be Egypt's new parliament speaker

Reuters ^ | Mon Jan 16, 2012 2:01pm EST | Tamim Elyan

[Olog-hai]

CAIRO—Leading Egyptian political parties will back a senior figure in the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) for the assembly's speaker, with another Islamist group and a liberal party taking the deputy posts, an FJP official said on Monday.

The prime task of the new parliament, the first elected since an uprising swept Hosni Mubarak from power last year, will be to pick a 100-strong assembly to write a new constitution.

Liberals fear that sweeping gains by Islamists in elections will put faith-based parties in the driving seat and lead to more religious strictures.

Islamists insist they want an inclusive government and a constitution that represents all Egyptians. …

FJP is projected to secure 232 seats, or 46 percent, while the more hardline Nour party, which advocates the strict application of Islamic law, has 113 seats, or 23 percent.

Two liberal groupings, the Wafd Party and the Egyptian Bloc, are projected to come in third and fourth, but the full results of the staggered election that began in November have yet to be announced because votes in some areas are going to be run again. …

[momincombatboots]

Islamist want to represent all Egytians... Color me skeptical.

[Wuli]

“FJP is projected to secure 232 seats, or 46 percent, while the more hardline Nour party, which advocates the strict application of Islamic law, has 113 seats, or 23 percent.”

Together therefor, the Islamsists (”soft” and “hard”) have 69% of the seats - enough to block moderates and secularists; and secure enough to not need to appease them in any way.

The hardline Nour party will have no trouble moving the MB aligned FJP party to joining it on policies, lest the MB risk being successfully painted by Nour as “not faithful enough” to Islam.