Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood candidate Mohamed Morsi was announced on Sunday by the electoral committee as the new president of the country. The committee said Morsi garnered 52 percent of the vote to Ahmed Shafiq's 48 percent. Morsi, a longtime member of the Muslim Brotherhood, and now a top official for the group's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), is an American-educated figure who came to prominence following the 18 days of uprising that ousted former President Hosni Mubarak. His opponent, Shafiq, was the last Prime Minister under Mubarak's regime during that revolution and had been criticized by revolutionary groups for continuing the old regime's iron fist rule over the country. Supporters of Morsi broke into cheers when the committee announced the results. Tens of thousands of people had gathered in central Cairo's Tahrir Square to continue to protesting against the military junta's power grab last weekend that saw it take complete control of the country, including the legislative branch. The lead-up to the announcement on Sunday was met with uncertainty and tension, with report upon report highlighting the increase in military presence on the streets and warnings on state television of potential violence. Both candidates' camps had announced victory and their supporters had already started celebrating. Morsi's campaign had put him as the winner by a 900,000 vote difference from the primary results they have gathered. Morsi has already formed a coalition with the revolutionary youth powers and different political parties and groups with the hope of pressing the military junta to relinquish the power they took last week. Thousands of anti-military rule protesters in the country and Morsi supporters are camping in Tahrir Square. Many activists and commentators have called the move a “military coup" against the revolution.
