Fotouh, Moussa campaigns boosted

The decision by Egypt's election commission to bar 10 candidates from the presidential elections for failing to adhere to the legal criteria has thrown the campaigns of other front-runners in the spotlight. Abdelmoneim Aboul Fotouh and Amr Moussa are seen to be the leading contenders after political powerhouses Omar Suleiman, Khairat al-Shater and Hazem Abu Ismail were disqualified. Aboul Fotouh, 60, was part of a moderate reform wing in the Brotherhood until his expulsion. His candidacy has won the approval of Sheikh Yousef al-Qaradawi, an Egyptian cleric based in Qatar who is influential in the Brotherhood and beyond. A medical doctor, Fotouh has also started to win support outside the Islamist movement among secular-minded Egyptians looking for someone committed to democratic reform. Meanwhile, Moussa, who describes himself as a liberal nationalist, is also likely to win votes among secular-minded Egyptians worried about the dramatic gains made by Islamists in the year since Mubarak was toppled. The 75-year old, a former Egyptian foreign minister, has also move squarely back to the heart of the race thanks to Tuesday’s disqualifications. Moussa is due to launch his campaign manifesto on Wednesday in a slum on the outskirts of Cairo.