A Blog by the Editor of The Middle East Journal

Putting Middle Eastern Events in Cultural and Historical Context

Monday, October 27, 2014

Tunisia's Results

With nearly complete results in, Tunisia appears to have held a largely smooth, genuinely competitive election that is electing a new Parliament in which the plurality of seats will shift from Islamist to secularist, but with the other bloc still heavily represented.

With 214 of 217 seats decided,  (link in Arabic), the secularist Nidaa Tounes will hold 83 seats, while the Islamist Ennahda (al-Nahda) will hold 68. The remaining seats are scattered among a range of smaller parties, so coalition-building or a national unity government will be necessary. Ennahda has conceded.

Nidaa Tounes consists of a range of secular establishment elements. Some had criticized the presence of some figures from the Ben Ali era.

Early reactions from election observer groups via social media seem largely positive, at least so far


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