Egypt’s newly elected parliament dominated by Islamists

CAIRO

Two days before the assembly’s first meeting following the thwart of Hosni Mubarak close to 1 year ago, it is apparent that the Muslim Brotherhood Islamists led by the Freedom and Justice Party emerged as the largest group in Egypt’s new parliament winning 235 of the 498 elected seats in the lower house. . The new parliament, due to hold its first session on Jan. 23, “is the best celebration of the Egyptian revolution,” Freedom and Justice said in a statement according to a report in Bloomberg.

A breakdown of election results from party lists:

332 members of parliament

Freedom and Justice – 127

Nour party – 96

Wafd party – 36

Egyptian Bloc – 33

The assembly is to select a committee that will write a new constitution, though the exact powers of parliament remain unclear. Protesters that ousted Mubarak continue to call for mass rallies on January 25, the anniversary of the beginning of the Egyptian uprising against Mubarak. And although Egyptians have had seven weeks of democratic elections, it has failed to calm tensions between activists and the military council that took power from the ousted President. The military council has said it would cede power when a president is elected in a national vote by the end of June.

Read the full article at Allvoices.

Jon Huntsman Senior Campaign Official tells CNN Huntsman Will Drop Out of Race

CNN reports that a senior official on the Jon Huntsman campaign told CNN that Huntsman will drop out of the presidential race tomorrow. This announcement comes after South Carolina’s largest newspaper, The State, endorsed him just six days before the Republican presidential primary. The State cited Huntsman’s job-creating tenure as Utah’s former governor as well as his foreign policy experience and his strong appeal to centrists as the reasons for their endorsement.

Huntsman also received another big newspaper endorsement from The Boston Globe in Massachusetts, a largely Democratic state, just days before the New Hampshire Republican primary.

Endorsements aside, Huntsman has been near the bottom in the national polls and came in a distant third behind Mitt Romney and Ron Paul.

Read the entire article at Allvoices.

Ban Ki-moon Expected to Seek Re-Election As United Nations’ Secretary-General

In Political-News this Sunday morning, Diplomats at the United Nations say that Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, a former South Korean foreign minister, is likely to announce his plans to seek another five-year term as early as Monday pending a Security Council recommendation and a vote by the organization’s 192-members.

As of yet, there has been no public announcement made with respect to any challenger for the agency’s lead which Ban Ki-moon took in 2007 when he succeeded Kofi Annan. Since taking the lead office, Mr. Ban has earned a reputation for extensive travel around the world and taking on sensitive issues, including the recent controversy in Sudan and the takeover of the Abyei region bordering southern Sudan which is known for its rich oil reserves.

Ban Ki-moon recently called on the African Union to stress to both sides a military showdown over Abyei is not an option.

Read the original article at: Ban Ki-moon Expected to Seek Re-Election As United Nations’ Secretary-General

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