Tunisian presidential elections will take place as scheduled in September and October, the head of the country’s elections authority has said.
Though he has yet to announce plans to run for a second term, Tunisian President Kais Saied is up for reelection after a tumultuous first term. Saied ran in 2019 on a populist, anti-corruption platform that energized Tunisians disillusioned with party politics and economic stagnation.
Throughout his tenure, he has reversed some of Tunisia’s democratic gains — rewriting the country’s constitution to consolidate his own power and jailing critics, including from the country’s largest political parties.
With leaders of the Islamist party Ennahda and the right-wing Free Destourian Party imprisoned, few have stepped forward to challenge Saied.
Former Tunisair CEO Olfa Hamdi, a longshot candidate, announced her candidacy in November.
Peoplesmind
