By Nehal El-Sherif, dpa
Cairo (dpa) – Like dozens of young Egyptians standing for parliament, Amr Abdel Hady does not have much money to spend on campaigning.
So he has spent most of the past weeks walking around the streets in his district in Giza near Cairo to canvass potential voters.
“They could see I was coming alone to talk and listen to them. I have neither bodyguards nor campaigners,” said Abdel Hady, who is running as an independent.
The 34-year-old is running in the second round of Egypt's three-stage parliamentary elections. The second stage began Wednesday in nine of Egypt’s 27 governorates.
The two main Islamist parties, who were officially licensed after the ouster of former president Hosny Mubarak, came top in the initial round of the polls, which run until mid-January. Liberals, meanwhile, lagged behind in third place.
The surge in Islamists' gains at the ballot box has triggered fears that freedoms will be restricted in post-revolutionary Egypt.
“I've been asked this question many times: 'Are you a liberal or a (hardline) Salafist?'. My usual answer is: ‘I belong to a moderate family, who know how to enjoy life',” Abdel Hady told dpa.
A lawyer, a political activist and a writer, Abdel Hady was one of millions of Egyptians who took to the streets across Egypt calling for Mubarak to step down earlier this year.
He decided to run for the new parliament to push for a “balanced constitution and a government that can achieve the goals of the revolution.”
Mubarak was forced out of power on February 11 after hundreds of thousands of Egyptians camped in central Cairo's Tahrir Square for 18 days.
The military council, whose members were appointed by Mubarak, has been ruling the country since then.
Although credited for its support for the January 25 revolution, the military junta has been criticized for using force against pro-democracy demonstrators since then and setting a slow pace for reforms.
“The council has acted as though no revolution had taken place. It should have barred Mubarak’s loyalists from running in these elections,” Abdel Hady said.
He added that exposing these loyalists to the public was another reason for his decision to stand for parliament.
Despite his few resources, Abdel Hady's political ambitions are high. He plans to run for the presidency in 2017 when he is 40 years old.
“If I win in my bid for the parliament, my experience will be a great asset for me. If not, I'll focus on outlining my presidential campaign to prove that a young man can rule Egypt. I am hopeful,” said Abdel Hady.
Unlike Abdel Hady, Doaa Bishry was not involved in politics before the anti-Mubarak revolt. However, she decided to run for parliament.
"I felt I finally got the opportunity to participate in shaping the future of my country," she said.
"I also wanted to show that we, the youth, can be present both in Tahrir Square and parliament, and that the revolutionary and political movements can work on parallel lines," said Bishry, who is running on the ticket of the newly formed Al-Adl (Justice) Party.
Over the past few years, Egypt's youth have played a key role in organizing protests against the Mubarak regime, extensively using social media.
"This is the parliament of the revolution. I am convinced that the revolution is still under way,” said 25-year-old Mohammed Gamal, the youngest Egyptian contesting a parliamentary seat.
He is running in the southern province of Minya, where elections are to be held as part of the final round on January 3.
“The new parliament marks a crucial stage to complete the revolution," added Gamal.
According to a report by the United Nations in 2011, 25 per cent of Egyptians are between the ages of 18 and 29.
Gamal is a member of the newly formed Al-Tayar al-Masry (the Egyptian Tide), a moderate Islamist party whose members defected from the influential Muslim Brotherhood.
It is part of the Revolution Continues Alliance that supports many young activists vying for parliament.
"We want to restore Egypt's status that was mired in corruption and hypocrisy for decades," Gamal said.