Mohamed Morsi became the Muslim Brotherhood candidate for Egypt's presidency after their previous candidate Khairat El-Shater was disqualified in April. Seen as a substitute candidate, Morsi was widely taunted as being nothing more than Istebn (spare tyre in Arabic).

In contrast to El-Shater, a charismatic businessman, many doubted Morsi's chances of winning, or of even becoming a frontfronner in Egypt's presidential race.

In the final couple of weeks, the Muslim Brotherhood's organisational machine threw itself behind it's candidate, with Morsi's rise increasingly reflected in a number of opinion polls.

With most of the votes counted, Morsi looks to be in first place, and it is looking likely that he will face Mubarak-era figure Ahmed Shafiq in a runoff.

Below are a couple of recent Ahram Online articles which critically examined the doubters:

The Brotherhood's Morsi: Wildcard of Egypt's presidential race

Pre-election polls say Muslim Brotherhood presidential candidate Mohamed Morsi does not stand a chance, but with powerful Islamist organisation behind him, Morsi could be the next big surprise

The long road to Egypt's presidential palace

After a long - and often torturous - journey, millions of Egyptians will vote in Wednesday's 1st post-Mubarak presidential election: an overview.