Tunisia’s Kais Saied won 90.7% in elections held earlier this month despite accusations of political oppression
Tunisian President Kais Saied has begun his second term after a landslide victory in the North African country’s October 6 elections, where he faced only two opponents. Several other hopefuls were disqualified amid a crackdown, including arrests in the lead-up to the polls.
Saied’s inauguration event took place on Monday, with many reporters barred from attending. The local association, the National Syndicate of Tunisian Journalists, denounced the move as “discrimination” and a “restriction on the freedom of journalism.”
During the ceremony, the 66-year-old leader pledged to “build a country where everyone can live in dignity” while also calling for a “cultural revolution” to combat corruption, terrorism, and unemployment. The country’s unemployment rate reached 16.2% in the first quarter of 2023, according to the World Bank.
“Challenges are numerous and must be overcome swiftly,” the president said.
The swearing-in came more than a week after the Tunisian Independent High Authority for Elections (ISIE) declared Kais Saied winner with 90.69% of the total votes. Businessman Ayachi Zammel, who was sentenced to 12 years in prison five days prior to the elections, emerged as the president’s closest challenger, receiving 7.35%. Zammel’s lawyer told AFP on Tuesday that the politician had received additional prison time, bringing his total sentence for falsifying ballot endorsements to more than 30 years.
The third candidate, Zouhair Maghzaoui, won 1.97% of the vote. Only 28.8% of the more than nine million registered voters cast their ballots, according to ISIE.
On Tuesday, opposition figure Maghzaoui accused Saied of using “all the tools of power to narrow down the competitors and opponents” in order to win an election held in “exceptionally undemocratic circumstances.”
He, however, extended his well wishes to the president, whom he claims has failed to outline any “tangible [and] realistic program” for the country during both his campaign and swearing-in ceremony.
“I urge him to finally resolve the dispute regarding the case of candidacy in the next elections and respect the constitutional democratic standards by supervising the reins of the presidency of the state for only two consecutive terms, and cutting the way early on appeals and manipulation of the constitutions, and to focus on improving the reality of the Tunisian people, economically and socially,” Maghzaoui said.
Saied, a former law professor, came to power in 2019, promising prosperity in a country that has been grappling with economic difficulties dating back to the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings. In July 2021, the politician suspended parliamentary activities, stripped MPs of their immunity, and fired then-Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi. His opponents accused him of staging a coup and reversing the nation’s achievements since the longtime ruler Zine El Abidine Ben Ali’s forced resignation during the Arab Spring.
The president has denied allegations of politically oppressing opponents and has repeatedly denounced foreign interference.
He has vowed to use his second term to target “thieves and traitors on the payroll of foreigners,” blaming “counterrevolutionary forces” for thwarting his efforts to improve Tunisia’s struggling economy during his first term.
“There is no place in our country for those who do not seek to fulfil the hopes of our people,” he said.
