In this article in openDemocracy, Andrea Teti and Gennaro Gervasio analyse Egypt’s parliamentary elections, arguing that while it is not possible to consider them democratic or a part of a process of liberalization or democratization, the elections are nonetheless a crucial bellwether of the regime’s health. These elections show a regime divided within itself, particularly within the ruling NDP, and alienated from the population at large. The main opposition group, the Muslim Brotherhood, also suffer from many of the same problems: an elitist group, their economic policy is not substantially different from the regime’s, and they have been vulnerable to the greater activism and effectiveness of the independent labour movement.