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A8 WORLD NEWS
Monday 16 SepteMber 2019

Outsider, jailed tycoon top Tunisian presidential vote

By BOUAZZA BEN BOUAZZA would come in third, fol- from further deadly attacks
TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — A lowed by Defense Minister by Islamist extremists.
jailed media magnate and Abdeldrim Zbidi and then Tunisia is in many ways
an independent outsider Prime Minister Youssef Cha- an exception in the Arab
appeared likely to face off hed, who had been con- world, with its budding de-
in Tunisia's presidential run- sidered a top contender. mocracy lurching forward
off, after a roller coaster Sigma Conseil said it ques- despite challenges. Some
first-round race in the coun- tioned 38,900 people at 6,000 Tunisian and interna-
try that unleashed the Arab 778 of Tunisia's 4,554 polling tional observers, including
Spring pro-democracy up- stations, spread out over 27 from the European Union
risings. of the country's 33 regions. and the United States,
Official preliminary results It claimed the poll had a monitored the vote.
are expected in the next margin of error of 1%. More than 100,000 security
couple of days from Sun- The electoral commission forces were on guard Sun-
day's voting, in which cor- announced that overall day as 7 million registered
ruption, unemployment turnout was a relatively low voters were called to the
and Islamic extremism were Ennahdha's presidential candidate Abdelfattah Mourou casts 45%. If no candidate wins polls. Military surveillance
among key campaign is- his ballot in a polling station during the first round of the presi- more than 50% of Sunday's was especially tight in bor-
dential election, in La Marsa, outside Tunis, Tunisia, Sunday Sept.
sues. A second-round vote 15, 2019. vote, the election goes to der regions near Algeria
is expected by Oct. 13, the Associated Press a second round. The exact and Libya where Islamist
electoral commission chief date of the runoff will be extremists are active.
said. independent Rais Saied, a laundering and tax evasion announced once the final Sunday's election follows
An exit poll by agency Sig- constitutional law professor charges, was predicted to first-round results are de- the death in office in July
ma Conseil forecast what without a party. come in second with 15.5%, clared. of the nation's first demo-
would be a surprising result: Tycoon Nabil Karoui, jailed according to the poll. Both Saied and Karoui cratically elected leader,
A top showing of 19.5% for since last month on money Karoui's supporters quickly promised to fight unem- Beji Caid Essebsi. His widow,
declared victory, and his ployment, a key problem Chadlia Saida Farhat, died
wife Salwa said his legal in Tunisia that also helped Sunday at age 83, as Tuni-
team is pushing for his re- drive its 2011 revolution. sians were voting.
lease as soon as Monday. Saied has no political back- This is only the second dem-
She read a letter he wrote ground but notably picked ocratic presidential elec-
from jail in which he said the up support among young tion that Tunisia has seen
apparent results reflected voters with his straight- since the 2011 popular
"the Tunisian people's wish forward, anti-system im- uprising brought down au-
to see change, to say no to age and constitutional tocrat Zine El Abidine Ben
injustice, no to poverty, no law background. Corrup- Ali and triggered uprisings
to marginalization and yes tion frustrates many vot- across the Arab world.
to a fair state." ers, which might have in- "The most important thing
The polling agency project- creased the appeal of an is that the vote be trans-
ed the candidate of mod- outsider candidate. parent ... and reflect the
erate Islamist party Ennah- Karoui meanwhile posi- choice of voters," said re-
dha, Abdelfattah Mourou, tioned himself as the can- tired journalist Radhia Ziadi,
didate of the poor, notably alluding to the days when
using his TV network to raise Ben Ali won election after
money for charity. His ar- election with well over 90%
rest appears to have mobi- of the votes.
lized voters in the struggling Tunis voter Sonia Juini
provinces or those who feel summed up the overall
sidelined in the Tunisian sentiment as she cast her
economy. Karoui was al- ballot, expressing hope the
lowed to remain in the race new president would make
because he has not been Tunisia more secure and
convicted. "improve living conditions
The voting followed a noisy and take care of marginal-
but brief campaign — 12 ized areas."
days — marked by back- Tunisia is also holding its par-
biting and charges of cor- liamentary election on Oct.
ruption among the con- 6, another challenge since
tenders. All vowed to boost the new president's success
the country's flagging will depend on having sup-
economy and protect it port in parliament.q