Some 7.8 million Tunisian voters began voting on Sunday in the second round of the legislative election for the choice of members of parliament with limited powers (00:00 GMT), which closes at 6 pm (05:00 GMT). The Independent High Commission announced that within the first three hours of the voting process, the participation rate reached 4.71%, with Commission Chairman Farouk Bouaskar describing it in a press conference as “better than the percentage recorded in the first round and very respectable.”
Dozens of more than 8,000 registered voters cast their ballots at a polling station in the Bardo area adjacent to the parliament building, according to an AFP correspondent. Hussein Al-Azuri, a 65-year-old pensioner, said: “I voted because it is mandatory and in order to turn the page of what was, there should be no way to return to the old regime.”
This sentiment is shared by Sharifa Al-Sidani (72), who voted because she “wants a better future for the youth”, a significant number of whom did not participate in the first round. 262 candidates are vying for 131 seats in the new parliament (out of 161) in the election, which is the final stage of a road map imposed by President Qais Syed, the most prominent feature of which is the creation of a strengthened presidential system, similar to the pre-revolutionary Tunisia.
The new parliament will have very little power as it cannot, for example, dismiss the president or hold him accountable. The President has priority in the proposal of bills. The new constitution does not require the government appointed by the president to have the confidence of parliament.
Attention in this election is mainly directed to the turnout, after the first round recorded a complete failure, the turnout was only 11.2% of voters. This is the lowest voter turnout since the beginning of the democratic transition in 2011 after the fall of the regime of the late President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
Experts estimate that the abstention rate is high and they fear that the country will deviate from the path of democratic transformation after it has become the cradle of a unique experience in the region.
Omran Dhuib, 37, a bakery worker in the province of Ariana, neighboring the capital Tunis, confirms: “Said had an opportunity to change conditions in the country, but he missed it and did nothing.” the daily wage is barely enough for my basic needs.”
For their part, opposition political parties, most notably the Islamist al-Nahda party, which had the largest blocs in parliament since the 2011 revolution, called for a boycott of the elections, calling what Said is doing a “coup”.
The electoral campaign looked sluggish, with a limited number of campaign posters posted on the streets and roads with candidates, most of whom are unknown to the Tunisian public. In an attempt to present them at their best, the Independent High Electoral Commission sought to organize debates between them, which were broadcast on state television during high attendance hours at night.
Youssef Cherif, a researcher at the Columbia Center, believes that “given the complete lack of interest of Tunisians” in political life, “this parliament will not enjoy much legitimacy. Thanks to the constitution of 2022, a strong president will be able to dominate it. as he pleases.”
Divided opposition
As for the opposition, which called for the president to step down after a large percentage of abstentions in the first round of elections, it remains divided into three blocs with different orientations, namely the National Salvation Front led by En-Nahda. party and the Free Constitutional Party, led by Abir Moussa, which advocates options, the Ben Ali regime and left-wing parties.
Opposition parties have been organizing demonstrations to denounce Said’s decisions since he approved them, and many of their activists are being prosecuted.
The political turmoil in Tunisia is accompanied by an economic stalemate exacerbated by the failure of crucial negotiations with the International Monetary Fund for a loan of about $2 billion. There appear to be several factors slowing down this loan, the most important of which, according to al-Sharif, is “the role of the United States”, the most visible actor in the International Monetary Fund, and its fear of Tunisia is slipping into tyranny.
In this context, US credit rating agency Moody’s announced on Saturday that Tunisia’s long-term debt was downgraded by an additional grade to ‘CAA 2’ with a ‘negative’ outlook, noting that there were ‘higher risks’ to its solvency. his contributions. Political scientist Hammadi Redissi, in a statement to Agence France-Presse, paints a grim picture of the state of Tunisia, saying: “The economic situation is tragic and the country is on the brink of collapse.”
One of the manifestations of the economic crisis is slowing growth to less than 3%, rising unemployment to more than 15% while rising poverty levels, prompting 32,000 Tunisians to illegally migrate by sea to Italy in 2022.
Observers believe that the only glimmer of hope for a way out of this crisis is the “rescue initiative” put forward by the General Tunisian Trade Union, the Tunisian Human Rights League, the National Organization of Lawyers and the Tunisian Economic Forum. and social rights” to present the proposals they will present to Said for a way out of the crisis.
