Polling stations in Tunisia opened their doors at 8 am local time (7 GMT) for voters to cast their votes in the presidential elections, in which 4 candidates are competing: the current president, Kais Saied, Secretary-General of the National People’s Movement, Zouhair Maghraoui, and Azmoun Liberal leader, Ayachi Zamal.
Zamal is running in the elections from prison after he was arrested in early September last year, on charges of falsifying popular votes for the elections.
It is estimated that the number of registered voters in the election register is 9 million and 753 thousand voters, including 642 thousand foreign voters who started voting from Friday.
Polling stations are expected to close at 6pm local time (5pm GMT).
The Independent High Electoral Commission is expected to announce the preliminary results “at least” next Wednesday. It is still possible to declare the results before this date.
Anti-Saeed protests two days before Tunisian presidential elections
Hundreds of Tunisians appeared in the capital on Friday, intensifying their protests against President Kais Saied, two days before the presidential elections, which they say were without credibility and wrong. -fair, in which Saied used the judiciary and the electoral authority to exclude his rivals with the aim of staying in power.
According to Agence France-Presse, Saied, who was elected with almost 73 percent of the vote in 2019, is very popular, even after he decided to monopolize the authorities, dissolve the Parliament , and change the constitution between 2021 and 2022.
After 5 years of rule, Saied is subject to heavy criticism from opposition and civil society groups, as he spent a lot of effort and time to “settle scores with his opponents,” especially the Conservative Party Islamist Ennahdha, which dominated political life during the decade following the overthrow of the late president Zein Ben Ali, in 2011.
The opposition, whose most prominent leaders are in prison, and Tunisian and foreign non-governmental organizations, denounce the “transfer of authority” by “censoring the judiciary and the media” , restricting civil society organizations, and arresting trade unions, activists, and media professionals,” according to Agence France-Presse.
Michael Al-Ayari, an expert at the International Crisis Group, said that the level of boycott “is likely to be large,” similar to what happened in the legislative elections that took place in late 2022 and early 2023, when the participation rate reached only 11.7 percent.
Speaking to Agence France-Presse, he said, “Citizens are not very enthusiastic about these elections, and many fear that a new term for Saied will only worsen the economic and social situation and the authoritarian movement of the government.”
Tunisia.. The General Labor Union is troubled by internal and external crises
The Tunisian General Labor Union, which, as the largest trade union group in Tunisia, played a prominent role in times of political and social crisis, due to internal conflicts between the trade unions his and external disagreement with the government regarding the demands of trade unions, played out through the years following the Tunisian revolution.
In a speech he delivered on Thursday, Saied called on Tunisians to have a “date with history”, saying: “Do not hesitate for a moment to turn out in a big way to participate in the elections,” because “it will begin the transition, that’s all. of them going to the ballot boxes to build a new building.”
On the other hand, Ramzi Jebabli, Zamal’s campaign manager, warned “in a letter sent to the Electoral Commission” at a press conference on Friday, saying: “Be careful about disturbing the voice of Tunisians. “
The election campaign was sparse, without meetings, election ads, or posters, and there were no televised debates between the candidates, as happened in 2019.
The process of accepting electoral candidate files from the High Independent Electoral Commission has been heavily criticized, to the point of being accused of being completely biased in favor of Saied, when it rejected the adjudication of prominent candidates. against re-introduction. the election race.
Hundreds of Tunisians demonstrated in the capital, Tunis, on Friday, denouncing “more repression” and calling for an end to Saied’s rule.
Muhammad, a 22-year-old unemployed university graduate, told Agence France-Presse that “there is no point in elections” due to the ongoing economic and social crisis, especially the high cost of living.
Human Rights Watch statistics indicate that “more than 170 people are already detained for political reasons or for exercising fundamental rights” in Tunisia.
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2024-10-06 07:03:40
