Carnegie Endowment for International Peace focused a recent report on the current controversy in Egypt between those who prioritize drafting a new constitution, and those who insist on holding parliamentary elections first. A report by researcher Michele Dunne found that Cairo's atmosphere has improved: the economy and tourism are doing better, and there has been a notable decrease in protests. However, the conflict between political powers has increased, especially as the country nears its first parliamentary elections since the January 25 Revolution. Egypt's political powers express anxiety about three main issues. They worry the army's rule will continue, that the dissolved National Democratic Party will return to power, and that the Muslim Brotherhood will dominate the Egyptian political scene. The Carnegie study signaled that only a minority of Egyptians focus on the inability of authorities to manage the elections in September, and the inability of new parties to rally supporters. The report highlighted the proposed system, describing it as unprecedented. The system is based on electing two-thirds of the members individually, while having the rest of the members elected by the proportional representation system. The report also stressed that Egypt has a unique regime of judicial supervision and it does not have enough judges to supervise the electoral process all over the country in one day. This has raised the necessity of holding the elections throughout consecutive weeks. The report believes the Military Council could respond to the desires those calling for a delay in the elections, especially since all the political powers in Egypt, excepts Islamists, have supported taking such step. Also, the Prime Minister and other ministers have expressed their desire to delay the elections. The revolutionary powers may have failed to convince the Egyptian people to refuse the constitutional amendments in March, but they have the ability to rally Egyptians for a planned demonstration on July 8. Therefore, the Military Council has only two weeks to make its decision.
