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Tunisian President Kais Saied wins second term

Tunisian President Kais Saied wins second term

Election officials stated that Tunisian President Kais Saied received over 90% of the vote during a campaign where his opponents faced imprisonment. Amnesty International reported a troubling decline in fundamental rights in Tunisia under his administration.

According to official results released on Monday evening, Tunisian President Kais Saied won re-election by a landslide. Tunisia’s Independent High Authority for Elections (ISIE) confirmed that Saied received 90.7% of the vote. He outpaced imprisoned businessman Ayachi Zammel and Zouhair Maghzaoui, a former supporter who ran against him.

In his first comments, Saied said on state television, “This is a continuation of the revolution. We will rebuild the country and get rid of the corrupt, traitors, and conspirators.” However, Zammel and Maghzaoui’s teams rejected the exit poll results, claiming the real results would be different.

Saied, 66, dismissed criticism of his actions. He claims he is fighting a corrupt elite and traitors and insists he will not become a dictator.

Tunisia was once celebrated as a success story of the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings. It established a competitive, though imperfect, democracy after years of autocratic rule. However, rights groups now argue that since Saied took power in 2019, he has reversed many democratic achievements. They say he has weakened institutional and legal checks on his authority.

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