Tunisia polls open with President Kais Saied set for re-election
Al Jazeera
Electoral body says about 9.7 million people are eligible to vote, but key presidential contenders are behind bars.
Voting in Tunisia’s presidential election has opened with no real opposition to incumbent Kais Saied, widely tipped to win as his most prominent critics, including a key contender, are behind bars.
Three years after a sweeping power grab by Saied, the election on Sunday is seen as a closing chapter in Tunisia’s experiment with democracy.
Polling stations opened at 8am (07:00 GMT) and will close at 6pm (17:00 GMT). Preliminary results should come no later than Wednesday but may be known earlier, according to ISIE, the electoral board.
ISIE said about 9.7 million voters are expected to turn out, but the near certainty of a victory by Saied, the ban and imprisonment of several opposition candidates as well as the country’s economic decline have left voters unwilling to head to the polls.
In the lead-up to the polling day on Sunday, there have been no campaign rallies or public debates, and nearly all of the campaign posters in city streets have been of Saied.
