CAIRO: The moderate Islamist Party, Wasat, announced on Sunday, its support to Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh, whom is considered a moderate Islamist presidential candidate, after an internal party vote. The party said, in an official statement, “the vote resulted in electing Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh by 63 percent, compared to 23 percent of votes for one of his competitors Muhammad Salim Al-Awa.” The party said that the members believe that presidential candidates Awa and Aboul Fotouh are symbols of the moderate Islamic school, which represents the majority of the Egyptian people's interests, pointing out that choosing one of them is asserting the party's bias to the idea of moderation. The decision by Wasat to support Aboul Fotouh in the presidential elections, comes after a similar decision by the ultra-conservative Salafist Nour party on Saturday. The Salafist Nour party's parliamentary bloc in the People's Assembly and the Shura Council along with the supreme body of the party and the Shura Council of the Salafist group, decided to support Aboul Fotouh in the upcoming presidential elections, scheduled for May 23 and 24.
