CAIRO, Egypt — Islamist Mo­hammed Morsi was declared the winner Sunday in Egypt’s first free presidential election in his­tory, closing the tumultuous first phase of a democratic transition and opening a new struggle with the still-dominant military rulers who recently stripped the presidency of most of its powers.

In Tahrir Square, the birthplace of the uprising that ousted auto­cratic President Hosni Mubarak, joyous supporters of Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood wept and kneeled on the ground in prayer when they heard the announce­ment on live television. They danced, set off fireworks and released doves in the air with Morsi’s picture attached in cele­brations not seen in the square since Mubarak was forced out on Feb. 11, 2011.

Many are looking now to see whether Morsi will try to take on the military and wrestle back the powers they took from his office just one week ago. Thousands vowed to remain in Tahrir to demand that the ruling generals reverse their decision.

In his first televised speech, the 60-year old U.S.-trained engineer called on Egyptians to unite and tried to reassure minority Christi­ans, who mostly backed Morsi’s rival Ahmed Shafiq because they feared Islamic rule.

He said he carries “a message of peace" to the world and pledged to preserve Egypt’s international accords, a reference to the peace deal with Israel.

He also paid tribute to nearly 900 protesters killed in last year’s uprising.

“I wouldn’t have been here between your hands as the first elected president without … the blood, the tears, and sacrifices of the martyrs," he said.

In the lengthy and redundant speech, Morsi appeared to be struggling to compose his sen­tences. Wearing a blue suit and tie, he looked stiff and uncomfort­able and did not smile throughout as he read from a paper. He was non-confrontational and did not mention the last-minute power grab by the ruling military, in­stead praising the armed forces.

The White House congratu­lated Morsi and urged him to advance national unity as he forms a new government. White House press secretary Jay Carney said Morsi’s victory is a milestone in Egypt’s transition to de­mocracy after decades of auth­oritarian rule under Mubarak.

The Obama administration had expressed no public preference in the presidential race.

Left on the sidelines of the political drama are the liberal and secular youth groups that drove the uprising against Mubarak, left to wonder whether Egypt has taken a step towards becoming an Islamist state. Some grudgingly supported Morsi in the face of Shafiq, who was Mubarak’s last prime minister, while others boycotted the vote.

Morsi will now have to reassure them that he represents the whole country, not just Islamists, and will face enormous challenges after security and the economy badly deteriorated in the trans­ition period.

Pro-democracy leader Mo­hammed ElBaradei urged unity after the results were announced.

“It is time we work all as Egyp­tians as part of a national con­sensus to build Egypt that is based on freedom and social justice," he wrote on his Twitter account.

The elections left the nation deeply polarized with one side backing Shafiq, who promised to provide stability and prevent Egypt from becoming a theocracy. Because of his military career, many saw him as the military’s preferred candidate.

In the other camp are those eager for democratic change and backers of Morsi’s Muslim Broth­erhood who were persecuted, jailed and banned under Mubarak but now find themselves one of the two most powerful groups in Egypt.

The other power centre is the ruling military council that took power after the uprising and is