Tunisian authorities unveil candidates for October’s legislative election

Tunisia’s election authorities will today announce the approved list of candidates for the North African country’s October 6 legislative vote.

The elections will be the third of their kind since the 2011 revolution and come less than three months after the death of President Beji Caid Essebsi. More than 15,000 candidates will vie for a place in the 217-member parliament.

Tunisia is led by a three-party coalition composed of the secular Tahya Tounes party, the big-tent secularist Nidaa Tounes party and the moderate Islamist Ennahdha party.

The three leading parties will be looking to stabilise the country’s faltering economy, capitalising off of $400 million of foreign direct investment inflows already accumulated in the first half of 2019.

Besieged by large public debts, high unemployment and inflation, the Tahya Tounes party seeks a win in the next election to pursue stalled economic reforms. Both the Nidaa Tounes and Ennahdha parties back economic reform, but have faced a number of internal party conflicts, despite financial aid and capacity building assistance from the International Monetary Fund.

The declining standard of living in the country continues to fuel political discontent. Today’s release of the candidates’ list will exhibit the splintering of the political landscape. The medium to long-term consequences of this fractious political environment may include an increase in adverse market sentiment towards the country and parliamentary seat openings for smaller parties.

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