Status: 07/26/2022 03:25 a.m
The voter turnout in Tunisia’s constitutional referendum was low. According to the electoral authority, only about one in four voted. According to initial polls, an overwhelming majority voted in favor of the controversial draft constitution.
Voter turnout on Monday for the vote on a new constitution in Tunisia was low. A total of almost 28 percent of those entitled to vote cast their votes, as the upper independent electoral authority announced.
The first results are expected later today. According to initial polls, a vast majority has approved the controversial draft constitution. He is supposed to secure more power for the president in the future – at the expense of parliament and the judiciary.
The introduction of a new constitution is part of a political restructuring driven by President Kais Saied. The new constitution provides that the president can appoint and dismiss the government and judges, among other things. He should also have the power to dissolve Parliament.
Saied regards constitution as invalid
So far, Saied has enforced many such decisions by decree, bypassing the previous constitution. According to his own statements, he considers these to be no longer valid.
Outside a polling station in the north of the capital Tunis, a woman said she feared a return to dictatorship: “I will say no to Saied’s constitution.” Another voter told the dpa news agency that the new constitution was the only way to end the crisis in the country. The President himself cast his vote in front of cameras, accompanied by his wife.
Exactly one year ago – on July 25, 2021 – Saied had deposed the then head of government and forced parliament to suspend its work. Eventually he dissolved Parliament altogether. The President also dismissed dozens of judges over alleged corruption. The country has since been divided between supporters and opponents of these moves. For months there have been repeated protests for and against the President.
No supervisory authority for presidents
Meanwhile, the new draft constitution no longer provides for an authority that could control the president or even remove him from office. The constitutional referendum is also seen as a decision on Saied’s leadership so far.
The people in the country have pressing concerns: many Tunisians are poorer today than they were in the days of long-term ruler Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who was forced out of office in 2011 by mass protests. They therefore do not believe that democracy is suitable for overcoming the country’s economic problems. But Saied’s political reorganization has so far not led to an improvement in living conditions.
Opposition: referendum is illegal
After the Arab uprisings of 2010, Tunisia was the only country in the region to successfully transition to democracy. However, the new constitution would destroy many democratic achievements.
The opposition called for a boycott of the referendum. She regards the whole process as illegitimate. The new constitution comes into force with a simple majority for the draft – regardless of the turnout.