With the hope of regaining the country’s stability after the revolution, Egyptians headed to the polls to cast their ballots in the country’s first free vote for a leader in 5,000 years of history.
Reports say around 50 million eligible Egyptian voters have been called to choose 13 candidates.
Two of the candidates are expected to go into June run-offs this year after the May 23 and 24 vote.
US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton today said the United States of America is looking forward to working with Egypt’s democratically elected government as the Egyptian people concluded a historic two days of voting in the first round of their presidential election, marking another important milestone in their transition to democracy.
Ms. Clinton says the United States will continue to stand with the Egyptian people as they work to seize the promise of last year’s uprising and build a democracy that reflects their values and traditions, respects universal human rights, and meets their aspirations for dignity and a better life.
On February 2011, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton announced that the United States stands ready to provide assistance to Egypt to advance its efforts. Secretary Clinton announced $150 million budget to assist Egypt in its economic recovery after turmoil.
Earlier this year, President Obama has proposed a $1 billion cancellation of Egyptian debt to support Egypt’s economic recovery.
Egypt has made progress on human rights since the revolution that toppled the regime of Hosni Mubarak earlier in 2011.
Long-standing regimes were toppled by a wave of pro-democracy protests that have engulfed much of North Africa and the Middle East in 2011, particularly in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya.
