Egypt presidential election 'set for June'

Egypt's first presidential elections since a popular uprising ousted veteran leader Hosni Mubarak a year ago will be held in the first week of June, officials were quoted as saying on Sunday. "The election will start in the first days of June and will end in the last week of June if there is a run-off," Ahmed Shams El-Din, a member of the presidential election committee told the independent daily Al-Masry Al-Youm. The head of the electoral committee Faruq Sultan told a press conference on Sunday that hopefuls can register for the election starting from March 10 to April 8. He said the committee will defer deciding on a date for the election until it sorted out the mechanism for absentee votes, but promised the election and a possible run off will take place by the end of June. Last month, a panel charged with advising the military council had proposed to hold the landmark elections on May 16, a month earlier than the June deadline set by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. Attempts at bringing forward the date come amid a series of nationwide rallies demanding the ouster of the SCAF. Activists accuse the junta of mismanagement of the transition, of human rights violations and of stifling freedoms. There is a widespread belief that the SCAF will attempt to retain some sort of power after the transition. The military has been the backbone of Egyptian politics since the fall of the monarchy in 1952, and every president since has emerged from the top ranks of the armed forces.