A latecomer to the 2012 presidential race, Ali announced his candidacy the day after he became eligible to run, making him the youngest candidate in the election.

[3] Ali was born in Dakahlia Governorate to a modest rural family[4][5] He enrolled at Zagazig University’s law school in 1990 and graduated in 1994.

Ali is known for filing and winning a landmark court case in 2010 that forced the government to set a minimum wage commensurate with the cost of living; it was raised to 1,200 Egyptian pounds per month and covers all workers.

"[17] Ali supported the December 2008 founding of the independent General Union of Real Estate Tax Authority Employees (RETA).

Ali has called on state authorities to allow workers to self-manage their companies when they are stalled, or when investors flee the country.

Amnesty International condemned the raid, which it characterised as a "crackdown", accusing the Egyptian authorities of "attempting to suppress the wave of popular protest" then taking place all across Egypt.

[22] Between 11 February and mid-April 2011 alone, the SCAF tried more than 5,000 civilians before military tribunals in trials generally lasting between 20 and 40 minutes in which groups of five to 30 defendants were tried at a time.

[24] In June 2011, Ali was heard by the Administrative Court regarding a lawsuit seeking to overturn Law 34/2011, passed by the SCAF and the Cabinet and which criminalized certain protests and strikes.

"[25] In August 2011, Ali took part in a press conference held by 36 non-governmental organisations (NGO) to condemn a "fierce campaign" by the government and SCAF to limit protests.

He criticised the Ministry of Social Solidarity for what he saw as their attempt to "monopolise" patriotism and decried the defamation of activists protesting against Mubarak and privatisation, as well as the practice of trying civilians before military tribunals as human rights violations committed by the Cabinet and SCAF.

[23] In order to gain a more accurate picture of the revolution and gauge its success, Ali has been involved in efforts to collect information about its participants, especially those who suffered injury or were killed.

[5] The press conference was a well-attended[27] event, held one day after his 40th birthday, the minimum age eligible to run for the office.

[29] Though known as an activist long involved with labor and social justice, Ali insisted that he does not speak for the revolution, which he said is incapable of being represented by any one person.

[32] In his candidacy announcement, Ali declared that his entire platform was "built on the basis of social justice," saying it was "not just decoration" but rather his primary focus and guiding principle,[10] and for him, a higher priority than winning the election.

[4] Ali wanted the public sector to regain its status and social importance by "providing affordable goods and proper employment policies".

Private property as a concept was not a problem for Ali, who believes that "no society can properly develop" without it;[27] however, the enjoyment of it does not carry the inherent right to violate labor laws.

[11] Speaking of his priorities as president, Ali said his primary focus would be restoration of Egypt's assets, lost when the former regime sold them off illegally.

[27] Ali called for a mixed economy and a "partnership" of the public, private and cooperative sectors that would prevent price fixing and monopoly.

[34] Ali draws his base of support from his prior work as a lawyer and activist, and his involvement in workers' rights and the 2011 revolution.

[28] Samer Soliman, professor of political science at the American University in Cairo acknowledged the gap but expressed some doubt about Ali's ability to fill it.

[28] Ali is known primarily as an activist lawyer and as such, as a politician, he was not widely known to his fellow citizens; even those in his circles were surprised by his decision to run, according to Al Akhbar.

Ali's lack of experience as a politician was also a concern and many, even within the revolutionary movement, remained skeptical about his candidacy,[28] which is seen as a long shot.

Critics argued that his campaign was an uphill battle and risked splitting the vote, which could benefit candidates connected with the prior regime.

[38][39] In September 2017, the Dokki Misdemeanor Court handed Ali a three-month prison sentence and ordered a bail of 1,000 Egyptian pounds for "offending public decency" while celebrating a court victory in which he successfully reversed a decision to transfer the sovereignty of the Tiran and Sanafir islands to Saudi Arabia.

[40] In a statement, Amnesty International characterised the ruling as "a clear signal that the Egyptian authorities are intent on eliminating any rival who could stand in the way of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s victory [in the 2018 elections]."

In November 2017, Ali successfully appealed the ruling, on the grounds that the Dokki Misdemeanor Court had failed to hear the defense's arguments.

[41] In October 2017, an unnamed woman circulated an email to various activists and civil society workers accusing Ali of sexual harassment over an incident that took place at his Cairo office in 2015, in which Ali allegedly requested to meet her and steered their conversation toward her personal and sexual relationships, before asking her to spend the night with him.

[42] In February 2018, the Bread and Freedom Party, which Ali formed in 2013, announced that their investigative committee acquitted him of all charges,[43] but Ali later announced his resignation from both the party and the ECESR, denying the allegations but apologising to the woman, stating that "just her thinking about me in this way and her writing an email of this nature means that I must offer an apology for the pain she experienced.

[44] In October 2018, a judge issued an order banning Ali from travelling abroad over suspicions of links to a case dating back to late 2011 alleging foreign financing of Egyptian NGOs to harm national security.