Cairo , Egypt ( CNN ) -- Egyptians go to the ballot boxes on Monday to vote for their fourth president in as many years . Unlike the last time they elected a president , the result of this election is a foregone conclusion . The former defense minister Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is widely expected to win in a massive landslide . What remains , however , rather difficult to predict is : what will an el-Sisi presidency bring to Egypt ? Egyptians have gone to the ballot box more than a half dozen times in the past four years . The last presidential elections resulted in a large number of candidates emerging , splitting the vote and leading to a run off between Ahmed Shafiq and Mohamed Morsy . The result was close , leading to the Muslim Brotherhood candidature of Morsy barely triumphing over Hosni Mubarak 's last prime minister , Shafiq . This time round , however , there is no possibility of a runoff round , because there are only two candidates . Morsy 's former defense minister , el-Sisi , who removed him from office after substantial protests almost a year ago , and the Nasserist contender , Hamdeen Sabahi , who came in third in the last presidential elections . The outcome is in little doubt -- el-Sisi can count on the support of the state 's main institutions , various media apparatuses , the political and economic elite , and a substantial proportion of the Egyptian population . Sabahi will struggle tremendously -- if he were to win even 25 % of the vote , it would be a respectable showing in the circumstances . The question remains , however : how will el-Sisi govern ? It is not entirely clear , because as yet , no official and complete presidential platform has even been released . His campaign team has indicated they do not believe it is appropriate to do so . Nor has el-Sisi himself been openly campaigning in rallies and so forth , with his team citing security concerns . That leaves room for a great deal of speculation , based on the few television interviews that the candidate has had and a few written ones , where he has constantly tried to lower expectations . What seems to be clear , however , is that el-Sisi 's most oft-repeated themes can be summed up in two : the Egyptian version of the `` War on Terror , '' and an emphasis on the likelihood that Egyptians will not `` rest '' as the economic difficulties are addressed . The first theme relates to a number of radical violent groups , such as `` Ansar Beit al-Maqdis , '' which have been targeting police officers and military personnel over the past year . It also relates to the Muslim Brotherhood , an Islamist group that has been banned by the Egyptian government as a terrorist organization , although the designation has been disputed . Thousands of their supporters and members are either on trial or detained by the Egyptian state -- the most famous trials have resulted in scores of death penalty verdicts being recommended by Egyptian judges . It is , however , unlikely such sentences will be carried out , regardless of an el-Sisi presidency , even though he announced in an interview that in his presidency there would be `` no '' Brotherhood . Nevertheless , the presidency of el-Sisi , who is blamed by the Brotherhood for orchestrating a military takeover last July , as well as massacres of their supporters , will still be regarded as illegitimate by supporters of that organization . Sisi 's non-Islamist opposition may acquiesce to the electoral result -- but they could still prove to be an additional thorn in the government 's side , agitating for progressive change . That may mean that the polarization of Egyptian society will continue for the foreseeable future . Regardless of the hopes of some , it is doubtful that the Brotherhood , or dissent in general , will simply disappear . The second theme relates more to the Egyptian economy , which is in a deeply worrying situation . It may continue to deteriorate , but wholesale collapse does not seem to be on the horizon . Egypt 's new authorities can count on the support of several Gulf countries , and the Egyptian military , as an institution , is expected to play a significant role in pushing forward on several projects designed to improve the Egyptian economy . The military 's top brass generally supported el-Sisi 's retirement , in order for him to run for the presidency , and for the time being at least , that institution will back him . Be that as it may , however , el-Sisi will become president at a time when the Egyptian public is more tired than ever . The last four years of instability have not delivered what that public expected , and while a significant proportion of it may give him a bit of breathing room in order to produce positive change , he will not be able to count on it indefinitely . If el-Sisi does not tackle the weighty problems concerning the economy , security ( including security sector reform ) , and corruption , he should expect there to be a reaction . In a country where the majority live either under or close to the poverty line , and youth ( who make up the majority of the population ) unemployment is incredibly high , minute changes may not be enough to bring genuine stability to this country . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of H.A . Hellyer .
el-Sisi go to the ballot boxes as many years to vote for their fourth president in as many years . H.A . Hellyer says the former defence minister Hellyer is widely expected to win . But he says what the Muslim Brotherhood will bring is harder to predict as his platform is unclear . Egyptians need economic , security and corruption issues to be tackled , Abdel Fattah el-Sisi says .