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VO1: Thousands of Islamists packed Tahrir Square last Friday for the first time in nearly five months.

The Muslim Brotherhood and the conservative Salafis had stayed off the streets since dominating parliamentary elections late last year.

But with presidential elections six weeks away, both Islamist groups filled Tahrir in a show of force.

Muslim Brothers lobbied for their candidate, Khairat Al-Shater, while the Salafis pushed for their favored choice, Hazem Salah Abu Ismael.

Both groups gathered to denounce the candidacy of Omar Suleiman, the shadowy former intelligence chief under ousted leader Hosni Mubarak.

In the end, all three presidential hopefuls are now officially out of contention.

On TUESDAY, the Egyptian Presidential Elections Commission CONFIRMED THE DISQUALIFICATION OF 10 candidates, including the two Islamists and Mubarak’s COHORT.

Out of the fray, this man is emerging as one of the new favorites to be Egypt’s next president.

500 miles south of Cairo and far from the political tumult, Dr. Abdel Moneim Abol Fotoh campaigned in this small Upper Egyptian city in relative obscurity.

A moderate Islamist who appeals to so-called Liberals and Seculars, Abol Fotoh has flown under the radar of the international media.

But boosted by a campaign driven by thousands of young volunteers, and aided by the disqualifications of his leading competitors, Abol Fotoh has quickly become one of the frontrunners in what could be Egypt’s first free and fair presidential elections.

INTERVIEW:

Abol Fotoh Volunteer

SOT2: There are liberals who support him. Islamists endorse him. Lots of political parties are supporting Dr. Abdel Moneim Abol Fotoh. There is no certain ideology for people to follow him. He's not like the Muslim Brotherhood or the Salafis.

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Luxor images marketplace

VO3: A 60-year-old physician, Abol Fotoh was one of the most prominent members of the Muslim Brotherhood.

But in the last decade, his socially progressive views and calls to make the Muslim Brotherhood more democratic made him enemies among the group’s leadership.

Shortly after the ouster of Hosni Mubarak, Abol Fotoh defied a Brotherhood dictum NOT TO SEEK THE PRESIDENCY, AND DECLARED HIS CANDIDACY INDEPENDENT OF THE ORGANIZATION.

The Muslim Brotherhood hierarchy expelled HIM from the organization.

But Abol Fotoh’s REMOVAL from the Brotherhood only bolstered his reputation among many Egyptians, who have become disillusioned with the organization’s cooperation with the ruling military regime.

Abol Fotoh is arguably the only candidate with a chance of winning the election who can claim to represent the youth at the forefront of the Egyptian Revolution.

Even many Ultras, the militant soccer fans who have led street protests since being brutally attacked at a match in Port Said two months ago, have declared their support for Abol Fotoh.

INTERVIEW:

Abol Fotoh Volunteer

SOT3: We support Dr. Abdel Moneim because he was the first person after the Port Said massacre. He was the first one there and stood by people trying to ease their pain. Although he doesn’t have any authority or anything, he stood by the Ultras and visited the families. He did all this as an Egyptian citizen even though he is not president yet.

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Walking in streets marketplace Edfu

VO4: ABOL FOTOH has promised that his vice-president would be less than 45 years old as would be 50 percent of the members of his administration.

But Abol Fotoh’s BASE EXTENDS BEYOND Egypt’s rebellious youth.

Here in upper Egypt, while there may be little media coverage, Abol Fotoh is mobbed in the street and thousands turn up for his speeches.

His impeccable Islamist credentials have won him support among the urban poor and rural population, despite the Brotherhood’s opposition to his candidacy.

In contrast to THE BROTHERHOOD LEADERSHIP AND TO OTHER high-profile POLITICIANS, since the revolution, ABOL FOTOH has consistently stood by anti-government street protests while DENOUNCING abuses of the Military Council.

HE HAS PLEDGED CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT OF THE ARMED FORCES, AND HAS DEMANDED RETRIALS FOR THOUSANDS OF CIVILIANS SENTENCED IN MILITARY TRIBUNALS. Abol Fotoh has promised to overhaul Egypt’s notorious Interior Ministry and end impunity for former officials of the Mubarak regime, AS WELL AS FOR members of the ruling military junta.

INTERVIEW:

Dr. Abdel Moneim Abol Fotoh

SOT1: Who robbed us of our wealth? Wasn't it under their control? The billions that were stolen. Who killed our sons? Didn't they do it? Wasn't that their plan? Who made the state security break into your homes in Upper Egypt, intimidate women and terrify the children, just so they can arrest an upper Egyptian man?

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Conference

VO: WHEN NEWS reaches the makeshift speaking hall that Mubarak’s feared former spy chief Omar Suleiman is banned from the race, THE CROWD CHEERS…AND ABOL FOTOH RESPONDS.­

INTERVIEW:

Abol Fotoh Supporter

SOT1: Omar Suleiman is out! He just got excluded, he was excluded just now. God is Great! The signatures are forged. All of them are!

INTERVIEW:

Dr. Abdel Moneim Abol Fotoh

SOT2: Down with all the remnants of the old regime! Down with Mubarak's entire regime! The heads were removed, but its roots still exist in the government. And they are still running the security apparatus. So they will be brought down, God willing. We will bring them down, God willing.

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VO: It’s not the first time Abol Fotoh has attacked Egypt’s authoritarian leaders.

In 1977, he famously angered then President Anwar Sadat by criticizing his administration during a public appearance, a bold breach of protocol that could have led to his arrest or worse.

As it turns out, Abol Fotoh would be imprisoned for his political activities three times in the next three decades.

In 1981, under Answer Sadat, he was jailed FOR TWO MONTHS as part of a CRACKDOWN ON ISLAMISTS.

AND UNDER HOSNI MUBARAK, ABOL FOTOH WAS A POLITICAL PRISONER FOR FIVE YEARS BEGINNING IN 1996 AND FOR ANOTHER FIVE MONTHS IN 2009

EVER self-effacing, ABOL FOTOH rarely talks about his experience in prison.

BUT HE DOES NOT HOLD BACK WHEN CRITICIZING US POLICY IN THE REGION.

HE HAS QUESTIONED EGYPT’S RELIANCE ON US AID AND HE HAS VOWED TO OPEN THE EGYPTIAN BORDER WITH GAZA.

INTERVIEW:

Dr. Abdel Moneim Abol Fotoh

SOT: The reason for the biggest financial disaster in the United States, in the last two to three years, are the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that they can't get out of. And the new regime in the U.S. realized the folly of that idiot named Bush. They realized how he sunk

the U.S. in a huge financial crisis. but they hardly seem to be trying to get out of it.

VO: While other candidates are both loved and hated depending on the demographic, Abol Fotoh has managed to be all things to all people…

And he HAS ASSEMBLED an eclectic team to run his campaign.

His CAMPAIGN MANAGER works for the multinational company 3M and his political advisor is a leftist academic.

And unlike other Islamist candidates, Abol Fotoh’s campaign has attracted A LARGE NUMBER OF women AND Coptic Christians to its ranks.

INTERVIEW:

Abol Fotoh Supporter

SOT1: It's Abol Fotoh or nothing. And I'm a Christian and we want him. Because he brings together Christians and Muslims.

VO1: In Edfu, Abol Fotoh visited doctors and lawyers…but he spent half the day talking with workers at state-owned factories.

INTERVIEW:

Factory Worker

SOT1: We see that you are an Islamist man, a moderate man, a liberal man, a man for all Egyptians. We have seen this since the beginning of your campaign on television. And everyone sees this. - God bless you, brother. And God willing you win.

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VO1: THE FLOUNDERING EGYPTIAN ECONOMY IS AT THE HEART OF THE PRESIDENTIAL RACE, EVEN IN TOURIST DESTINATIONS LIKE LUXOR, WHERE ABOL FOTOH CAMPAIGNED ON SUNDAY.

PEOPLE HERE COMPLAIN OF A LACK OF JOBS AND WORSENING LIVING CONDITIONS.

Abol Fotoh HAS MADE education and health care the pillars of his domestic PLATFORM, pledging to multiply the budgets for both.

Economic and social hardship was at the root of the revolution as much as a desire for civil and political rights, and Abol Fotoh’s social justice platform has resonated with many Egyptians.

INTERVIEW:

Resident of Luxor

SOT1: Where are my rights? I want my rights. I want my friends to obtain theirs too. And the slums, where the poor conditions are heartbreaking, while others have billions and trillions. 

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VO: While Abol Fotoh’s prospects are stronger than ever, the electoral road ahead is uncertain and unpredictable.

Abol Fotoh still lacks the name recognition of other leading candidates and he does not have the organized and expansive support base such as that commanded by the Muslim Brotherhood.

And nobody is discounting the possibility of fraud or other intervention by the military council.

STAND-UP:

Reed Lindsay

Luxor – Egypt

Stand-Up: With Omar Suleiman, Hazem Salah Abu Ismael, and Khairat Al-Shater out of the race, three other candidates appear to pose the biggest challenges to Abdel Moneim Abol Fotoh.

Ahmed Shafiq, a former air force commander and prime minister under Mubarak.

And Mohammed Mursi, the Muslim Brotherhood’s back-up candidate.

Amr Moussa, former Arab League secretary general and foreign minister under Hosni Mubarak who has tried to distance himself from the former regime.

Amr Mousa officially launched is campaign on Wednesday in a slum on the OUTSKIRTS OF Cairo.

MOUSSA IS A HOUSEHOLD NAME SINCE HIS DAYS AS MUBARAK’S FOREIGN MINISTER.

HIS CAMPAIGN IS WELL-FUNDED AND HAS NO LACK OF MEDIA COVERAGE.

For more than a year, Moussa has been picked as a favorite to win the election, and at least one poll gives him a sizeable lead.

INTERVIEW

SOT: He cares for the Egyptian people. He's honest. He's a clean man. He had a very good relationship with Egyptian people, and which is why Mubarak removed him from the foreign ministry, which made him popular.

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VO: BUT WHILE Moussa HAS TRIED TO DISTANCE HIMSELF FROM MUBARAK, MANY EGYPTIANS STILL SEE HIM AS A FELOOL, OR REMNANT, OF THE OLD REGIME.

INTERVIEW

Resident of Slum

SOT: Amr Moussa came today to our neighborhood, to our slum. He came to mock us, laugh at us. We want to tell him...He comes here, after 30 years of never seeing a neighborhood like this, he comes here to mock people for the sake of the presidency. Where was he before? And this guy Amr Moussa, isn't he from the old regime? Wasn't he foreign minister? And then head of the Arab league? Isn't he from the old regime?

VO: If no candidate wins MORE THAN 50 PERCENT OF THE VOTE IN THE FIRST ROUND ELECTION SLATED FOR MAY 23 AND MAY 24, A SECOND ROUND OF BALLOTING BETWEEN THE TOP TWO CONTENDERS IS SCHEDULED FOR JUNE 16 AND JUNE 17.

Reed Lindsay, in Cairo, Egypt.