Tunisia: Second round of legislatives set for January 29

Tunisia’s independent electoral body, ISIE, announced Sunday the second round of the parliamentary elections will take place on January 29, amid growing calls for cancellation of the electoral process.

head of the body Farouk Bouasker, who announced the date, said the campaign for the second round will commence on January 16.

The process will take place in 131 constituencies with 7.8 million voters.

The first round which took place on December 17 recorded the lowest turnout ever registered in the history of the country. The ISIE put the turnout at 11 per cent.
Most opposition parties and powerful labor union UGTT boycotted the election in rejection of President Kais Saied-backed new constitution. Saied, in power since 2019, seized all major powers in July 2021 in what was branded a coup by critics and oppositions parties.

Saturday, thousands of Tunisians, pitched up in capital Tunis at the call of Ahmed Nejib Chebbi, president of the National Salvation Front alliance, to demand the resignation of President Saied following the unpopular election and difficult economic situation in the country.

Chebbi said Saied had “lost all legal legitimacy.”