81% Of Egyptian Muslims Think Stoning Should Be the Punishment For Adultery

Impact

The fall of Muslim Brotherhood rule in Egypt has led enough people to declare political Islam in Egypt dead for Foreign Policy's Fawaz A. Gerges to write a strong rebutall focusing on the resiliency of the Islamists. But instead of looking at the supply of Islamist politicians, we should look at the demand. Here are findings about the opinions of Muslims in Egypt from a 2013 Pew Survey.

1. 74% said shariah should be the official law of the land. 81% of those said stoning should be the penalty for adultery.

2. 55% say they favor a "democracy" while 36% say they favor a "strong leader."

3. 75% say religious leaders should have either "some influence" or "strong influence" on politics.

4. 94% say it is necessary to believe in god to be moral.

5. 95% say homosexual behavior is immoral. 

6. 0% said they would be comfortable with their daughter marrying a Christian.

If democracy is to reflect the wills of the people, political Islam will continue to be important to Egypt, even if it is not administered by the Muslim Brotherhood.