Tunisia’s Saied Projected in Landslide Win: Reuters

Exit polls project Kais Saied as the decisive winner of Tunisia’s presidential race by 70 percent. Tunisia triggered a wave of protests in 2011, what became known as the Arab Spring: It was the first country to remove its dictatorial ruler and the only one to sustain the transition to democracy. Saied’s campaign, operating with little funding promised a return to the values of the 2011 Arab Spring. “Sunday’s vote was only Tunisia’s second free presidential election and came after years of economic frustrations that overshadowed the legacy of the 2011 revolution which threw out autocratic rule,” reports Reuters. Saied is a retired law professor backed by both Islamists and leftists, the article notes, and he must deal with a polarized parliament, high debt, a 15 percent unemployment rate and inflation exceeding 6 percent. Tunisians expect the government to improve the economy and living standards. – YaleGlobal