Tunisians began casting votes in an unpredictable presidential election on Sunda...
TUNIS - Tunisians began casting votes in an unpredictable presidential election on Sunday where there is no overwhelming front-runner, with the young democracy’s economic ills dominating the agenda.
In the upmarket Tunis suburb of La Marsa, long queues formed outside polling stations. “These are really historic moments. I got here at 7am... to give my voice to our new leader who must protect our democracy,” said Lilia Amri, 36, a bank worker. Heavily indebted, Tunisia’s next government, like its last, will have to navigate popular demands to relax public purse strings while foreign lenders push for spending cuts.
Prime Minister Youssef Chahed, as well as two former prime ministers, a former president and the defence minister are among the two dozen candidates hoping to win outright or, if none of them win more than 50%, to advance to a second round run-off. Analysts have warned that a close outcome, with several candidates near the cut-off point to make the second-round, and a host of existing allegations of low-level malfeasance, make appeals likely.
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