Egypt presidential election this year: interim govt.

CAIRO: Egypt will elect a new president by the end of the year, the ruling military council said on Wednesday, laying out more details of the political transition which Egyptians hope will produce a democratic government.

The new head of state would be elected a month or two after parliamentary elections scheduled for September, said Mamdouh Shaheen, a member of the military council which has governed since popular protests toppled Hosni Mubarak on February 11.

"The military council will give up legislative powers to the new parliament once it is formed and will give up the remaining presidential powers to the president once a new president takes office," Shaheen said during a news conference.

Candidates for the position held by Mubarak for three decades include Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa and former U.N. nuclear watchdog chief Mohamed ElBaradei, both civilians seeking a job held by former military men since the 1950s.

The election will be held according to new rules that open up competition for the position and limit presidents to two, four-year terms. Mubarak was in his fifth, six-year term when he was swept from power by a mass uprising.

Shaheen said Egypt needed a new president for "stability and development". The turmoil of the last two months has harmed Egypt's economy, dealing a blow to tourism among other industries. Reflecting uncertainty, the Egyptian pound is at six-year lows against the dollar.

Alia Mamdouh, an economist at CI Capital, said the timetable unveiled by the military this week had eased concerns that the interim period of military rule could drag on. "The sooner things settle down, the better for the economy," she said.

The military council is seen as eager to relinquish power as soon as possible to a civilian, elected government. It dissolved parliament and suspended the constitution a day after taking power from Mubarak. (Reuters)