Who is Mohammed ElBaradei?

Mohammed ElBaradei - the former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency and Nobel Peace Prize winner in 2005 for his efforts to curb nuclear proliferation, returned to Egypt in February 2010 with aspirations of revitalizing political life and mobilizing a grassroots opposition movement. He publicly called for constitutional reforms and safeguards to guarantee the integrity of upcoming parliamentary elections, but after determining that the regime had failed to accommodate these demands, ElBaradei endorsed a full electoral boycott in August 2010. Mohammed ElBaradei is a former Egyptian diplomat, having served in Egypt's Ministry of Foreign Service before joining the IAEA in 1984, but he is generally perceived as a newcomer to Egypt's political scene.

In February 2010, approximately 30 politicians, intellectuals, activists, and other prominent public figures convened at ElBaradei's home, where the group decided to launch an opposition front called the National Association for Change. The NAC insists that ElBaradei is not the group's leader or figurehead, but merely a symbol of its purpose. In fact, leading members of the NAC have occasionally clashed with ElBaradei, for example over the issue of ElBaradei's frequent travel abroad during the period leading up to the parliamentary elections, and these internal tensions may eventually pose a liability to the movement's cohesion.

ElBaradei's return to Egypt has generated excitement over his potential bid for the presidency in 2011 elections. However, he has stated that he will not contest elections unless the regime undertakes political reforms to ensure that they are free, fair, and subject to judicial supervision. Furthermore, eligibility criteria laid out in Article 76 of the constitution-amended in 2005-make it virtually impossible for ElBaradei to run for president, as he has not been a top leader of an established political party for one year. Alternately, as an independent candidate, Mohammed ElBaradei would be hard-pressed to mobilize the support of 250 members of Egypt's NDP-dominated representative institutions.