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Early Results in Egypt Show a Mandate for Islamists
(New York Times) David D. Kirkpatrick - Islamists claimed a decisive victory on Wednesday as early election results put them on track to win a dominant majority in Egypt's parliament. The party formed by the Muslim Brotherhood appeared to have taken about 40% of the vote. But analysts said the ultraconservative Islamist Salafis could take as much as a quarter of the vote, giving the two groups combined control of nearly 65% of the parliamentary seats. This week's voting took place in only a third of Egypt's provinces, including some of the nation's most liberal precincts, suggesting that the Islamist wave is likely to grow stronger as the voting moves into more conservative rural areas in the coming months. The new majority is likely to increase the difficulty of sustaining the U.S.' close military and political partnership with post-Mubarak Egypt.