Tunisians are headed to the polls on Sunday for presidential elections widely expected to be dominated by incumbent leader Kais Saied, who's seeking a new term amid a struggling economy and political tensions.
Nearly nine million people are expected to cast their vote in the third presidential election since Tunisia's 2011 Arab Spring uprising, which paved the way for the country’s transition to democracy.
Key issues include Tunisia's stalled economy and high unemployment.
President Saied has faced criticism for his handling of economic challenges, particularly his refusal to accept a $1.9 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund, citing concerns about austerity measures that would hit the nation's most vulnerable.
Tunisians are already preoccupied by the difficulties of daily life as the country suffers a deep economic crisis.
Voters also expressed disillusionment after multiple political setbacks, clampdowns on freedom of expression, and the arrests of politicians, journalists and members of civil society.
Migration – a growing crisis due to rising numbers of Tunisians and sub-Saharan Africans attempting to cross to Europe – is also a worry.
'This country has let us down': young Tunisians seek future abroad
Three candidates
Only two candidates will face Saïed – including one who is in prison, Ayachi Zammel.
Back in 2019, some 26 candidates ran for president. Saied was elected with nearly 73 percent of the vote.
Until then, he had been a respected legal assistant, inclined to answer legal questions from media looking for a compass in the early days of democratic fumbling.
Saied has forged a reputation as a man of integrity and incorruptibility.
He was expected by many to foster a counter-power to Ennahdha, the Islamist party that dominated post-revolutionary Tunisian political life until then.
But he slowly metamorphosed into what observers call a "hyper-president", concentrating all power, and repressing most freedoms.
During his mandate, the country has lived through terrorist attacks, political assassinations, the Covid pandemic, a migrant crisis and financial downturn.
In 2021, Saied moved to seize full powers in most domains. The 66-year-old hasn't presented a programme or participated in any debates for these polls.
An opponent jailed
Zaied's fiercest opponent is the businessman Ayachi Zammel, who was sentenced to 12 years in prison just five days before the election.
A former MP who leads the opposition Azimoun party, Zammel was jailed on charges of falsifying documents, including voter signatures on his candidacy paperwork.
The jail sentence doesn't affect his candidacy. The same was the case with 2019 presidential hopeful Nabil Karoui, who made it into the runoff against Saied from behind bars.
But unlike Karoui, who was well known as the owner of widely watched television channel Nessma, Zammel is a newcomer.
A 'pseudo' candidate
Zouhair Maghzaoui is former MP of an Arab nationalist party and admirer of the Brazilian Lula.
He has faced criticism for his previous support of the president, and there is little enthusiasm among Saied's opponents for his candidacy.
North Africa analyst Pierre Vermeren describes Maghzaoui as "a second-rate personality with a similar political persuasion as Saied's", and says that to allow him to join the race presents the incumbent with no real risk to his rule.
He added that Maghzaoui's candidacy was "a way of neutralising potential opposition".
These imbalances between the candidates make election's outcome seem decided in advance, Vermeren said.
"Everything was done to ensure that a second round will not take place," he told news agencies.
The first results of Tunisia's elections are expected by 9 October.
