Why Resistance to the Executive Power Grab in Tunisia Is Failing

Abstract

Kais Saied’s July 2021 power grab in Tunisia is a clear case of democratic backsliding, and the nation’s judiciary, political parties, and civil society organizations have been unable to slow the democratic erosion that is occurring under the Saied regime. I describe the political resistance to backsliding and why it has failed to date, analyzing the roles of specific institutions and individual actors in that resistance. I argue that two key dynamics explain why efforts to mobilize against Saied’s power grab have failed to slow democratic erosion in Tunisia: top-down regime control of key government institutions and a deep popular frustration with the country’s political class, which limited bottom-up mobilization against Saied’s power grab.