2019 Tunisian presidential election explained

Country:Tunisia
Type:presidential
Previous Election:2014 Tunisian presidential election
Previous Year:2014
Election Date:15 September 2019 (first round)
13 October 2019 (second round)
Next Election:2024 Tunisian presidential election
Next Year:2024
Turnout:48.98% (first round)[1]
55.02% (second round)[2]
Image1:President Kais Saïed.jpg
Candidate1:Kais Saied
Party1:Independent politician
Popular Vote1:2,777,931
Percentage1:72.71%
Color2:E10A1A
Candidate2:Nabil Karoui
Party2:Heart of Tunisia
Popular Vote2:1,042,894
Percentage2:27.29%
President
Before Election:Mohamed Ennaceur (interim)
Before Party:Nidaa Tounes
After Party:Independent politician

Presidential elections were held in Tunisia on 15 September 2019,[3] the second direct vote for the presidency since the 2011 revolution.[4] The elections had originally been planned for 17 and 24 November,[5] but were brought forward after the death of incumbent President Beji Caid Essebsi on 25 July to ensure that a new president would take office within 90 days, as required by the constitution.

As no candidate received a majority of the vote in the first round, a runoff was held on 13 October between the top two candidates, Kais Saied and Nabil Karoui. Saied won the second round with 72.7% of the vote.[6]

Background

In April 2019, incumbent President Beji Caid Essebsi said that he would not seek re-election, opening the candidate field to other candidates. However, Essebsi died on 25 July at age 92, with five months left in his term. The President of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People, Mohamed Ennaceur, became interim president, according to the Constitutional provision for presidential succession.[7] According to Article 84 of the Tunisian constitution, an interim president may serve for a maximum of 90 days, meaning Ennaceur's role was due to expire on 23 October 2019.[8] In order to comply with this, the High Authority for Elections announced the election will be held sooner than scheduled,[9] being moved up from 17 and 24 November to 15 September and 13 October.[10]

Electoral system

The President of Tunisia is directly elected by universal suffrage using the two-round system. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote in the first round, a second round is held between the top two candidates.[11] Candidates must be at least 35 years old on the day of filing for candidacy, and are also required to be Muslim. Candidates must have Tunisian citizenship, and are required give up any other citizenship they hold.

Electoral reform controversy

On 18 June 2019, the Assembly of Representatives passed amendments to the country's electoral law, accused by some of blocking candidates like Nabil Karoui and Olfa Terras from being eligible to run in the election.[12] The amendments prohibited those with a criminal record, as well as those who run charitable organizations or received foreign funding for political advertising in the year preceding an election.[13] On 25 June, members of Nidaa Tounes and the Popular Front filed a motion in the Assembly of Representatives, calling the move unconstitutional.[13]

Candidates

Approved candidates

Image Candidates PartyReference
Mohamed AbbouDemocratic Current[14]
Saïd AïdiBeni Watani[15]
Hatem BoulabiarIndependent[16]
Abid BrikiTunisia Forward[17]
Youssef ChahedLong Live Tunisia[18]
Selma ElloumiAl Amal[19]
Elyes FakhfakhDemocratic Forum for Labour and Liberties[20]
Hechmi HamdiCurrent of Love[21]
Hamma HammamiPopular Front[22]
Néji JalloulIndependent[23]
Hamadi JebaliIndependent[24]
Mehdi JomaaTunisian Alternative[25]
Nabil KarouiHeart of Tunisia[26]
Seifeddine MakhloufDignity Coalition[27]
Omar MansourIndependent[28]
Mohsen MarzoukMachrouu Tounes[29]
Moncef MarzoukiAl-Irada[30]
Abdelfattah MourouEnnahda Movement[31]
Abir MoussiFree Destourian Party[32]
Lotfi MraïhiRepublican People's Union[33]
Mohamed Esghaier NouriIndependent[34]
Mongi RahouiPopular Front[35]
Slim RiahiNew National UnionN/A
Safi SaïdIndependent (supported by People's Movement)[36] [37]
Kais Saied[38]
Abdelkrim ZbidiIndependent (supported by Nidaa Tounes)[39]

Rejected candidates

Candidates who declined to run

Televised debates

For the first time in the country's history, presidential election debates were held in Tunisia. Organised by the Munathara Initiative and sanctioned by Tunisia's election authority, ISIE, the debates were held on 7, 8 and 9 September 2019. The debates were broadcast on 11 public and private Tunisian TV channels, on Al Jazeera, as well as on Algerian, Libyan, and Iraqi TV stations.[44] Some three million viewers, or 42 percent of the country's registered voters, followed the first debate. The figure does not include live streaming audiences or audiences outside Tunisia.[45]

Opinion polls

See main article: Opinion polling for the 2019 Tunisian presidential election.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Tunisia: How a cooking contest has brought rural voters to the ballot box . 13 October 2019 . france24.com.
  2. Web site: Official Announcement by the Independent High Authority for Elections Regarding Results of the Second Round of the 2019 Presidential Election. 14 October 2019 . Independent High Authority for Elections of Tunisia.
  3. Web site: Tunisie: l'élection présidentielle reprogrammée au 15 septembre. 25 July 2019. 14 September 2019. Le Figaro/Reuters. fr.
  4. Web site: Tunisia set to hold second free presidential election. BBC. 15 September 2019. 15 September 2019.
  5. Web site: Tunisia delays presidential elections by one week to Nov 17. Reuters. 30 March 2019. 3 June 2019.
  6. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-14/tunisians-seeking-change-get-an-unlikely-president-robot-man Tunisians Seeking Change Get an Unlikely President
  7. News: Tunisia parliament speaker Ennaceur to serve as temporary president. 25 July 2019. Reuters. 25 July 2019. en.
  8. Web site: Tunisia's Constitution of 2014. 1 September 2019. Constitute Project. 25 July 2019.
  9. Web site: Tunisia's first freely elected president dies. 25 July 2019. BBC. 25 July 2019.
  10. Web site: Exclusive: Tunisia presidential run-off vote set for October 13.
  11. Web site: Tunisians vote in unpredictable presidential contest. Al Jazeera. 15 September 2019. 15 September 2019.
  12. News: Daou . Marc . En Tunisie, un code électoral "taillé sur mesure pour éliminer certains candidats" . 25 July 2019 . France 24 . 20 June 2019 . fr.
  13. News: Tunisie: recours contre une modification du code électoral . 25 July 2019 . L'Orient-Le Jour . 25 June 2019 . fr.
  14. Web site: 2019 Presidential Race: Abbou meets with Jendouba locals. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  15. Web site: Presidential election: Beni Watani's Saïd Aïdi campaigns in Sfax. Tunis Afrique Presse. 6 September 2019. 14 September 2019.
  16. Web site: 2019 Presidential campaign: Independent Hatem Boulabiar in Ariana. Tunis Afrique Presse. 11 September 2019. 14 September 2019.
  17. Web site: Presidential race: Abid Briki in Zarzis. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  18. Web site: 2019 Presidential Race: Youssef Chahed ends his campaign in Manouba. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  19. Web site: 2019 Presidential Race: Salma Elloumi inaugurates party premises in Beja. Tunis Afrique Presse. 12 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  20. Web site: 2019 Presidential Race: Elyes Fakhfakh in Bab Souika for his campaign. Tunis Afrique Presse. 12 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  21. Web site: 2019 Presidential Race: Hamdi campaigns in El Kef. Tunis Afrique Presse. 12 September 2019. 14 September 2019.
  22. Web site: Presidential polls: Hammami campaigns in Bizerte. Tunis Afrique Presse. 10 September 2019. 14 September 2019.
  23. Web site: Presidential race: Neji Jalloul campaigns in Gafsa. Tunis Afrique Presse. 11 September 2019. 14 September 2019.
  24. Web site: Presidential Race 2019: Hammadi Jebali in Tataouine for electoral campaign. Tunis Afrique Presse. 12 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  25. Web site: 2019 Presidential Race: Mehdi Jomaa campaigns in Sousse. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  26. Web site: Court of Cassation rejects appeal filed by Nabil Karoui's defence lawyers. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  27. Web site: Presidential race: Dignity Coalition candidate Seifeddine Makhlouf campaigns in Kebili. Tunis Afrique Presse. 8 September 2019. 14 September 2019.
  28. Web site: Presidential elections 2019: Omar Mansour campaigns in Ariana. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  29. Web site: 2019 Presidential Race: Mohsen Marzouk campaigns in Mejel Bel Abbès. Tunis Afrique Presse. 12 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  30. Web site: Presidential race: Moncef Marzouki campaigns in Gabes and Medenine. Tunis Afrique Presse. 10 September 2019. 14 September 2019.
  31. Web site: 2019 Presidential Race: Mourou in election meeting in Sousse. Tunis Afrique Presse. 12 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  32. Web site: Presidential election 2019: Abir Moussi in Siliana for electoral campaign. Tunis Afrique Presse. 12 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  33. Web site: 2019 Presidential Race: Lotfi Meraihi ends his campaign in Nabeul. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  34. Web site: 2019 Presidential Race: Mohamed Sghaier continues campaign in Kasserine. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  35. Web site: 2019 Presidential Polls: Rahoui campaigns in Manouba. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  36. Web site: 2019 Presidential Race: Safi Said in Gafsa. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  37. Web site: Presidential vote: Safi Saïd campaigns in El Hamma. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  38. Web site: 2019 Presidential Race: Kaîs Saîd campaigns in Sfax. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  39. Web site: 2019 Presidential Polls : Zbidi in sfax for election campaign. Tunis Afrique Presse. 13 September 2019. 13 September 2019.
  40. News: Who will be Tunisia's next president? Here's the shortlist. Ahlem Mimouna . Middle East Eye. 15 August 2019.
  41. News: Meet the man hoping to become the Muslim world's first openly gay president. https://web.archive.org/web/20190715153122/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/tunisia-lgbt-gay-president-candidate-mounir-baatour-shams-a9003656.html . 2019-07-15 . limited . live . Simon Speakman Cordall . Independent. 14 July 2019.
  42. News: Tunisie – AUDIO : Samia Abbou candidate aux présidentielles ? . 31 July 2019 . Tunisie Numerique . 16 February 2019 . fr-FR.
  43. Web site: Tunisia's 92-year-old president will not seek re-election. BBC. 6 April 2019.
  44. News: Tired of TV debates? In Arab world, they're historic, and inspiring.. 2019-09-11. Christian Science Monitor. 2019-09-30. 0882-7729.
  45. Web site: Près de 3 millions de téléspectateurs devant le premier débat de la présidentielle. 2019-09-09. Al HuffPost Maghreb. fr. 2019-09-30.

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