At stake in this election:

• The office of the President of Tunisia*

*As a result of president Beji Caid Essebsi's death on 25 July, the elections were brought forward in order to ensure that a new President would take office within 90 days, as required by the constitution. In the event that no candidate obtains an absolute majority of votes during the September 15 election, a second round will be held between the two candidates with the highest number of votes. It will take place within two weeks after the release of the final results of the first round, which will be announced by October 4 at the latest. In case of a tie, the older candidate will be declared the president.  [1]

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: Interim President Mohamed ENNACEUR (since 25 July 2019)*
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Youssef CHAHED (since 27 August 2016)
• Assembly: Tunisia has a unicameral the Assembly of the Representatives of the People (Majlis Nuwwāb ash-Sha‘b) with 217 seats.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by absolute majority popular vote through a two-round system to serve a 5-year term.
• The Prime Minister is chosen by the parliament, after legislative elections, is usually the leader of the majority party (or coalition) and is asked to form a government by the president.
• In the Assembly of the Representatives of the People, 217 members are elected through a closed-list proportional representation system with the largest remainder method. **

**There are 27 domestic constituencies and six out-of-country constituencies. The electoral law requires gender parity on the lists, and all candidates lists presented must alternatively rank women and men. The law also requires youth representation by stipulating that candidate lists in any constituency which has at least four seats must include a male and female candidate no older than 35 among the first four candidates.

Main candidates in this presidential race:*

•  Candidate: Abdelfattah MOUROU
  • Party: Ennahda Party / حزب حركة النهض
• Candidate: Youssef CHAHED (Current Prime Minister of Tunisia)
  • Party: Long Live Tunisia
• Candidate: Abdelkarim ZBIDI (Minister of Defense)
  • Party: Nidaa Tounes / حركة نداء تونس
• Candidate: Nabil KAROUI
  • Party: The Heart of Tunisia / Au cœur de la Tunisie **
• Candidate: Mehdi JOMAA (Former Prime Minister, Industry Minister)
  • Party: Independent
• Candidate: Mohammed ABBOU
  • Party: Democratic Current /  التيّار الديمُقراط
• Candidate: Selma Elloumi REKIK
  • Party: Nidaa Tounes / حركة نداء تونس‎
• Candidate: Hamma HAMMAMI
  • Party: Worker’s Party / حزب العمال
• Candidate: Mehdi JOMAA (Former Acting Prime Minister)
  • Party: Independent
• Candidate: Mohsen MARZOUK
  • Party: Machrouu Tounes / مشروع تونس
• Candidate: Moncef MARZOUKI (Former President)
  • Party: N/A
• Candidate: Abdelfattah MOUROU
  • Party: Ennahdha Party / حزب حركة النهضة
• Candidate: Abir MOUSSI
  • Party: Free Destourian Party / لحزب الدستوري الحر‎ 
• Candidate: Mongi RAHOUI
  • Party: Democratic Patriots' Unified Party / حزب الوطنيين الديمقراطيين الموح
• Candidate: Slim RIAHI
  • Party: Free Patriotic Union / الاتحاد الوطني الح

* There are 26 candidates running in this election.

** In June, Parliament passed an amendment to its electoral law which would have banned Karoui from running for president. The draft said candidates need to be rejected who benefit from “charitable associations” or foreign funding during the year before an election. However, former President Essebsi had not signed the law before he died, allowing Karoui to run.

Population and Voter Registration:

• Population: 11,516,189 (July 2018 est.)[2]
• Registered Voters: 7,074,575 (2018 est.)[3]

Gender Data:

• Female Population: 5,791,328 (2018 est.)[4]
• Is Tunisia a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (since 24 July 1980)[5]
• Has Tunisia ratified CEDAW: Yes (20 September 1985)[6]
• Gender Quota:  Yes: “Legislated Candidate Quotas” in the National Constituent Assembly[7]
• Female Candidates in this election: 2.
• Number of Female Legislators: 78 (36%) of 217 seats in the National Constituent Assembly[8]
• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 90[9]
• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Ranking: 22^nd out of 86 non-OECD countries (latest rankings are from 2012)[10]

Disability Data:

• Is Tunisia a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)[11]
• Has Tunisia ratified CRPD: Yes (02 April 2008)[12]
• Population with a disability: 1,655,584 (according to World Health Organization’s 15% estimate)[13]