Africa News

Oct 25, 2009, 10:17 GMT

Tunisians go to polls, amid opposition party boycott

Tunis - Some five million Tunisians were called to the polls Sunday in presidential elections virtually certain to return veteran President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to power for a fifth term, with one major opposition party calling a boycott. Ben Ali, 73, is running against three candidates little known in the general electorate. He has ruled the country the past 22 years. For Sunday's election, the voting age was lowered from 20 to 18 years, with polling stations open between 8 am and 6 pm. Results of the voting are expected on Monday. Ahead of the elections, the major opposition Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) announced plans to boycott the voting, charging that the election process was being manipulated. The party was blocked from competing in 17 districts after authorities ruled its applications ineligible. The North African country is viewed as one of the quietest and most stable in the Arab world, with it economy currently growing 3 per cent annually. But critics point to the political repressions and human rights violations in the country, particularly against opposition groups.

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