Egyptians moved further along the path of change after ousting Hosni Mubarak and 15 months of military rule. In June Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood beat his military-backed rival, Ahmed Shafik to become the first ever Islamist head of state in the Arab world.

While some citizens are unhappy that an Egyptian court sentenced Mubarak to life in prison instead of death, many are downright angry that the court released his apparatchiks at the Ministry of Interior, with the exception of Interior Minister Habib al Adly. Egyptians hold the Ministry of Interior responsible for the deaths of over 2,000 people killed in the revolution. Adding fuel to the fire is the recent acquittal of Mubarak's sons Gamal and Alaa on corruption charges.

The verdict cast a dark shadow on the future of Egypt; it came right in the middle of a run-off poll between Egypt's two front-runners, Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood and Ahmed Shafiq, who served as prime minister toward the end of the Mubarak regime.

The change of leadership in the country after the presidential poll on May 23 and 24 is the third step toward a stable and democratic Egypt. The country took their first step with the revolution, followed by the parliamentary polls. The next step is ratifying and implementing a new constitution.

The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), which has been holding the reins of power since Mubarak's ouster, will have to relinquish the power to civilians.

Locals who experienced the revolution feel that the military has slowly usurped and disrupted the quest for a new, free Egypt. Perhaps only a civilian government will begin the march toward a new dispensation.

Noha Atef, an Egyptian blogger and activist, hoped that the polls will "get rid of the military junta, which is militarizing everything." She has been documenting incidents of torture and the worst acts by police. Noha's hope depends on how the military reacts to civilian rule. Alaa al-Aswany, the Egyptian author of bestselling novel The Yacoubian Building, believes that the SCAF is an extension of the Mubarak regime.

"These people [SCAF] are the generals who were appointed by Mubarak, so I don't expect them to have a different vision for Egypt. I don't believe that they believe in the revolution," al-Aswany said in an interview with Al Jazeera TV.

Namees Arnous, a journalist and activist, said the violence that preceded the presidential polls was "very bad." To her, it looked like the belligerent SCAF was trying very hard to find an excuse to secure a few more weeks on the throne and postpone the elections.

"I don't think that this election will make the dreams of the revolution come true. As a revolutionary, I don't feel that any of the candidates express me and my dreams. The candidates are limited to ex-regime and Islamists, which is bad. It is a disappointment for me and all of us who went to streets and squares demanding freedom and a new regime based on rule of law, freedom, dignity and change," Arnous said.

With Morsi and Shafiq as the frontrunners in the May polls, it looked as though Egyptians were restricted to either the oppressive stability of the Mubarak regime with Shafiq or a possible Islamist regime, complete with Sharia Law and the possibility of a one-party state with Morsi since the Muslim Brotherhood and Islamists also control Parliament.

Soha Farouk, an Egyptian researcher with a special interest in democratic governance, writing in Opendemocracy.net, was doubtful about the impact new leadership would have in Egypt. "The fluid Egyptian environment will spark struggle between the secularists and the Islamists, the have and have-nots, the influential military and the recalcitrant youth impatient for change to define a new balance of power. It's not the end of the revolution, but it may just be the beginning," she said.

In early June, with just a fortnight before the presidential runoff, protesters camped at Tahrir Square, home of the Egyptian revolution, calling to bar Shafiq from presidency. They argued that he was a relic of the past and should not be allowed anywhere near the seat of power.

Hamdeen Sabbahi, a liberal, and Abdel Moneim Fotouh, who quit the Muslim Brotherhood, were rumored to be behind the protests. Sabbahi came in third and Fotouh fourth in the May elections. All eyes, for now, will be on the country's new president and what he does with the call for a new Constitution.

(Reporting from Kenya)