Egyptians drive past a billboard bearing the image of Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, as part of the campaign for his re-election in the upcoming polls scheduled for March 2018, on January 22, 2018, in Cairo.
In Egypt, where the military reigns supreme, a popular election looms in late March. Although the Supreme Council of Armed Forces remains the ultimate arbiter of power and authority over the government in Cairo, seven years ago, a surge of popular will shook its grip and shifted the Egyptian government. Since the Arab Spring protests in 2011 and the subsequent ouster of longtime President Hosni Mubarak, the military government has had to take popular pressure into account in ways it had not before, even as it tightens its hold on the overall governmental system. Regardless of class or region, Egyptians in 2018 share similar concerns over the country's stagnant economy and growing security threats , and candidates running for president will argue over how to best address them.
