Sisi made the announcement at the climax of a three-day national conference of the country's leading lawmakers. Titled "Story of Homeland," it was televised on the country's Extra News channel.

Sisi, 68, has been the country's leader since seizing power in a coup in 2013, displacing then-President Mohamed Morsi, who was later arrested and died in prison. A presidential election in 2014 resulted in Sisi's garnering an overwhelming number of votes and solidifying his role as leader. He served one four-year term and then ran for re-election, winning again with a very large percentage of the vote. That would have been the end of the road for Sisi, except that constitutional changes made in 2019 extended his four-year term to six years and then made it possible for him to serve four terms in all. So he runs again.

Election officials have said that if no candidate gets more than 50 percent of the vote, then the next step would be a runoff and that that would take place on January 8–10, 2024.

Most prominent among the challengers so far is Ahmed Al-Tantawi, who was at one time a lawmaker and head of the al-Karama Party. He has spoken out against Sisi and the government in recent weeks, calling attention to the country's weakening economy, a trend exacerbated by a steep drop in demand for wheat in the wake of Russia's war with Ukraine. Inflation has soared even as the country's currency has plummeted in value. Tantawi served in the Egyptian House of Representatives from 2015 to 2020 and was of 16 MPs who voted against the constitutional amendments that extended Sisi's term and viability. He resigned as party leader in 2022 and moved to Lebanon. He announced his candidacy in March, after returning, and since has reported that members of his family and other supporters have been arrested on a variety of charges.

Tantawi and anyone else who wants to challenge Sisi for the presidency will need the backing of 20 Members of Parliament or the signatures of 25,000 people from 15 different parts of the country in order to qualify for the ballot. Already, supporters of Al-Tantawi have reported difficulties in approaching notary offices in order to report progress in that regard.