Tunisia 's parliamentary elections accelerate in recent hours and record abuses

The Tunisian High Electoral Commission said that the turnout in the legislative elections until 2:30 pm local time (1:30 UTC) was 23.5% at the national level, while the two parties of the heart of Tunisia and Ennahda announced on Sunday their irregularities during the voting process. .

According to the commission at a press conference, the turnout of Tunisians abroad was 12% to 3:00 pm.

The legislative elections are the third in Tunisia since the democratic transition began in 2011 after the fall of the late President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

More than seven million voters are eligible to vote in more than 4,500 polling stations.

The Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) hopes to have a higher turnout than the first round of the September 15 presidential election, which stood at 45%.

The number of lists participating in the elections is 1503, including 673 party lists, 312 coalition lists and 518 independent lists.

These lists are distributed among 33 electoral districts, including 27 districts within Tunisia and abroad, to elect representatives of Tunisian communities in the 217-member parliament.

Parliamentary elections are held between the two rounds of presidential elections, which did not witness a large turnout.

Vote and effects
The first round of voting left only two new political figures on the scene at the expense of big party candidates.

The impact on Sunday's elections, in which Ennahda is competing with many parties, including the center-left party of the media tycoon Nabil Karoui, who is contesting a runoff on October 13, is still unclear.

If today's election does not produce a clear winner, it could complicate the process of forming a coalition government.

Reflecting the climate of uncertainty, both the Ennahda and the Tunisian parties affirmed that they would not join any government that includes the other party, an unprecedented position for the negotiations and the necessary response to form a government.

Today, the two parties announced irregularities during the vote in the legislative elections, in two statements.

The Heart of Tunisia said it had documented numerous serious abuses affecting the integrity and integrity of the electoral process by video and testimony in many regions.

The party added that its representatives and supporters filed complaints with the regional bodies of the elections.

Suspicious practices
Ennahda, for its part, said suspicious practices near polling stations have been observed by several individuals for allegedly conducting polls and deliberately contacting voters before casting their votes, in an effort to direct their will and influence their electoral choices.

The movement condemned all attempts to directly and indirectly influence the will of the voters and the outright propaganda of some parties (not identified) near polling stations.

If the largest party fails to win a large number of seats, with many independents, it may be difficult to form a coalition of 109 deputies needed to secure majority support for a new government.

He shall have two months from the date of the election either to succeed in this or either the President shall appoint another person to form a government. If it fails, the elections will be held again.

Under the constitution, the prime minister from the largest party in parliament dominates most domestic politics, while the president bears direct responsibility for foreign affairs and defense.