the opposition calls on the president to resign

The results of the legislative elections have not yet come in but the Tunisian opposition coalition is already calling on President Kaïs Saïed to resign. The National Salvation Front, a coalition of opponents dominated by the Islamist-inspired party Ennahdha, denounces the Tunisian population’s deep disinterest in the election.

According to the Tunisian electoral commission, only 8.8% of voters, or some 803,000 voters out of nine million, voted. This is the lowest voter turnout since the 2011 Revolution, after records (nearly 70% in the October 2014 legislative elections).

“An Illegitimate President”

“What happened today was an earthquake”said Ahmed Néjib Chebbi, the leader of the National Salvation Front. “From this moment, we consider that Saïed is an illegitimate president and we demand that he resign after this fiasco”he added.

Tunisians were called upon to renew their Parliament, a ballot wanted by Kaïs Saied to put an end to the process initiated by his July 2021 coup.

A new Assembly of 161 deputies, with very limited powers, must replace the one that Mr. Saied had frozen on July 25, 2021, arguing that the democratic institutions resulting from the first revolt of the Arab Spring, after the fall of dictator Ben Ali, were blocked. in 2011.

Unknown candidates

Accusing for months Mr. Saied (elected at the end of 2019) of “dictatorial drift”the opposition and most political parties boycotted the vote, also to denounce a change in the electoral law, imposing candidacies without party affiliation.

Another factor that could explain the disaffection: the candidates (1,055), half teachers or civil servants, were essentially unknown, with very few women (less than 12%) in a country committed to parity.

For months, the economic crisis has been the major concern of the 12 million Tunisians, with inflation of nearly 10% and recurring shortages of milk, sugar or rice.

Call for massive demonstrations and sit-ins

The Assembly of Deputies resulting from the ballot (after a second round by early March) will have very limited prerogatives under the new Constitution voted in July.

The opposition also invited Tunisians to “Massive protests and sit-ins” to demand a new presidential election.

Preliminary results of this first round of legislative elections will be announced on Monday.