Egypt's Supreme Administrative Court on Sunday issued a verdict supporting the right of former members of the now-defunct National Democratic Party (NDP) to run in parliamentary elections, reviving debate about the right of the former ruling party figures to participate in Egypt's post-revolution political life.
Following the ouster of former President Hosni Mubarak early last year, revolutionary groups and activists demanded a 'disenfranchisement law' banning former regime officials from engaging in political activity.
In April of last year, an administrative court formally disbanded the NDP in a historical ruling that put an end to the party that had ruled Egypt for over three decades. The court ruling did not, however, deprive former NDP members of the right to contest national elections.
In June of this year, Egypt's High Constitutional Court ruled that the proposed disenfranchisement law was unconstitutional. The ruling allowed former NDP members to run for political office, and even allowed Mubarak-era prime minister Ahmed Shafiq to contest the country's first post-Mubarak presidential election.
Legislative elections late last year saw several ex-NDP members – running independently or on the tickets of NDP spinoff parties – compete for parliamentary seats.
