In 2021, Tunisian President Kais Saied’s name began making headlines in ways it hadn’t before.

It was the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. People were making allegations about police brutality, and many were struggling to make ends meet.

 

So, Tunisians took to the streets in protest.

 

Mr Saied’s response was to dissolve the government, circumventing ordinary legal procedures. He cited the need to make amendments to the country’s constitution and political system. It was a popular move. The country had been in economic decline for years, a situation many attributed to the democratic system set up in the aftermath of the country’s uprising in 2011.

 

Before he became President, Mr Saeid was an acclaimed legal scholar, specialising in constitutional law. In 2019, he ran for office on a platform of decentralising the Tunisian government and promoting an indirect democracy.

 

But although Mr Saied remains popular, many fear that in the three years since his dissolution of the government, the President’s growing centralisation of authority has resulted in more of the very mistakes he says he sought to avoid. Today, Tunisia suffers from persistently high inflation, shortages of essential goods and a high national debt.

 

Now, Tunisia is gearing up for another presidential election on October 6, as Mr Saied seeks to extend his power.

 

In this episode of Year of Elections, host Sulaiman Hakemy and The National’s North Africa correspondent, Ghaya Ben Mbarek, discuss how Tunisia got to where it is today and what to expect ahead of the election.