CAIRO — President Mohammed Morsi issued a decree on Wednesday, Dec. 12 declaring that Egypt’s controversial constitutional referendum will be held in two phases. The first will cover 10 governorates, including the capital of Cairo, on Saturday Dec. 15, while the second will cover the remaining 17 governorates on Dec. 22.

The decision comes after weeks of failed attempts by the presidency and Egypt’s Supreme Judicial Council to sway thousands of judges not to boycott the referendum. The vote was rushed in response to a political crisis instigated by President Morsi’s Nov. 22 decree that granted him sweeping powers and immunity from judicial bodies.

Judge Zaghloul Al-Balshi, Deputy Justice Minister and secretary-general of the committee overseeing the referendum, reported to local press that the "number of judges who agreed to participate had reached 7,276" — around 4,000 fewer judges than the number required to hold the referendum in one phase.

The crisis between Morsi and Egypt’s judiciary intensified after Eastern Cairo Attorney General Mustafa Khater publicly embarrassed the president by releasing all 137 suspects detained after the violent clashes on Wednesday, Dec. 5. A few hours before the release order, Morsi said in a public speech that some of the suspects have “admitted receiving money to instigate violence, and there was evidence to be announced by the prosecutors.”