ABSTRACT
Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin succeeded in guiding their nations toward approval of a peace treaty in large measure because each possessed an extraordinary capacity to manipulate and dominate his respective political establishment. Sadat was well aware of the defects in Nasser's method of rule; the former vice president was after all a key participant in the patron-client relationships that dominated all decision making. Sadat's policies in the political arena were paralleled in the economic sphere. Sadat encouraged a resurgence of Islam, both to stem the tide of secularism and to help in the de-Nasserization of Egyptian society. Menachem Begin, the tough, uncompromising leader of Herut and the Likud, suffered a heart attack during the campaign and remained immobile through the largest part of the election process. Begin had established a party list prior to the election to determine the number of seats each Likud member would receive in the cabinet.
