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At first glance, it was a victory. Just two months ago, the Muslim Brotherhood was not even in the race for the Egyptian presidency. Last week, its candidate made it to the runoff, according to official results.

The brotherhood did what it does better than any other group in Egypt: mobilized a nationwide network to get out the vote, catapulting Mohammed Morsi into the second round on June 16 and 17 against Ahmed Shafiq, Hosni Mubarak's last prime minister.

But the success masks a setback. By its own calculations, the brotherhood's vote fell by almost half compared to the lower house parliamentary election six months ago.

The brotherhood lost ground in some of its heartlands, where its followers once braved tear gas and police beatings to cast votes in parliamentary elections in Mubarak's era.

In dramatic shifts in a fast-evolving electoral landscape, initial results showed that Morsi came fourth in Egypt's second city, Alexandria, an Islamist bastion. He was defeated by Shafiq in Nile Delta provinces long seen as brotherhood strongholds.

One of the group's leaders hinted at foul play, but the results have also provoked introspection among brotherhood figures who have seldom blamed anything but a hostile media for their public image problems in the past.

A moderate Islamist candidate said on Monday he did not accept the result of Egypt's presidential vote, saying the election had not been honest.

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