Tunisian President Kaïs Saied has set the date for the presidential election on October 6. This announcement was met with little enthusiasm in Tunisia, as some potential candidates were disqualified outright.
Elected president in 2019, Kaïs Saied has not officially announced his candidacy but declared last year that he would not relinquish power. Now that he has announced the presidential election for October 6, he could seek a second term, with his main competitors facing legal charges.
The opposition claims that fair and credible elections can only take place if imprisoned politicians are released and if the media are allowed to do their job without government pressure, according to Reuters.
Among the other candidates is Abir Moussi, leader of the Free Constitutional Party and a frontrunner according to polls. However, she has been in prison since last year, accused of endangering public security.
Other candidates, including Safi Saeed, Lotfi Maraihi, Nizar Chaari, and Abd Ellatif Mekki, are being prosecuted for alleged crimes such as fraud and money laundering.
Mondher Znaidi, a candidate residing in France, is also under investigation for suspected financial corruption.
