CAIRO, June 14 (UPI) -- The Muslim Brotherhood said it was joining forces with the liberal Wafd Party to run on a single ticket in September parliamentary elections.
The Muslim Brotherhood was sanctioned by Cairo recently to organize its political activity under the Freedom and Justice Party.
Muslim Brotherhood Chairman Mohamed Badie said after agreeing to run on single candidate list for September elections that broad-based agendas were needed for post-revolution Egypt.
Badie said no party could run the country by itself, noting it was imperative to merge insights and ideas about Egypt's political future, the Muslim Brotherhood said through its official Ikhwanweb site.
The Muslim Brotherhood was banned under the regime of Hosni Mubarak from competing openly as a political party. Opponents said the social organization of the group gives it an unfair advantage in the new political structure in Egypt.
The Muslim Brotherhood was formed in the 1920 and Wafd emerged as a liberal party shortly after World War I.
Elijah Zarwan, an Egyptian specialist at the International Crisis Group, told The Washington Post that the merger would give them a very strong base.
"It's a very significant switch," he was quoted as saying.
