Egyptian leftist politician Hamdeen Sabahi announced on Saturday he would be running for the presidency in a forthcoming election, enlivening a race that army chief Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is widely expected to win.

Sabahi came third in the 2012 election won by Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, who was deposed by the army in July following mass protests against his rule.

"My personal decision as a citizen is to run for the coming presidential elections," Sabahi said in a public address to supporters. "Hamdeen Sabahi's battle is the battle of the revolution," he said.

By using a popular touch to beat candidates with better funded campaigns, Sabahi, 59, established a large following during his campaign for the 2012 election.

The current dearth of candidates ahead of this election stands in stark contrast to the 2012 vote, the first time Egyptians were allowed to freely choose their head of state.

Abdel Moneim Abol Fotouh, a moderate Islamist who came fourth in that vote, has said he does not plan to run as he feels current circumstances in Egypt are neither free nor democratic.

Members of his party were detained in January while campaigning against a new constitution passed in a referendum.

Since Morsi was deposed, hundreds of his supporters have been killed and thousands arrested in a state crackdown on the Brotherhood, Egypt's best organized party until last year.

Some of Egypt's best known secular dissidents have also been jailed in recent months for protesting without permission.

Though he has yet to formally declare his candidacy, the 59-year-old Sisi seems certain to win the election as he is popular among many Egyptians who were relieved to see the end of Morsi's rule and see him as the kind of strong leader needed to stabilize a country in crisis.

He has been lionized by state and privately owned media.

The election is expected to be held as early as April.

Hassan Nafaa, a professor of political science at Cairo University, said Sabahi's decision could encourage more candidates to run, adding that a more competitive vote would bolster a Sisi presidency.

"It is in his favor to win by 60 percent rather than 90 percent," he said.

Reuters