At least 19 people were reported injured in the violence in Alexandria, which broke out after an ultraconservative cleric urged worshippers to vote "yes" and described the opposition as "followers of infidels."

The crisis pits Egypt's newly empowered Islamists against the country's mainly secular liberals, minorities such as Christians and a large sector of moderate Muslims. Both sides stepped up their campaigns after weeks of violence and harsh divisions that have turned Saturday's vote that turned to a determent of Egypt's identity after the revolution and whether Egypt takes another step toward theocratic rule after the rise to power of the fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood.