UPDATE - Tunisians voting to elect new parliament

UPDATES WITH DETAILS; REVISES HEADLINE

By Maher Jaidan and Yusra Ounas

TUNIS, Tunisia (AA) – Tunisian voters have been flocking to polling stations on Saturday to elect a new parliament amid a political crisis in the North African country.

The early polls are the latest step in a series of exceptional measures taken by President Kais Saied, which started in July 2021 with ousting the government, dissolving parliament, and drafting a new constitution.

Polls opened at 8 a.m. local time (0700GMT) and are set to close at 6 p.m. (1700GMT).

Around 9.2 million voters are eligible to cast ballots.

A total of 1,058 candidates, including 120 women, are running for seats in the 161-seat parliament.

Tunisians living abroad cast their votes already, on Thursday.

Voting in the capital Tunis, Saied called on Tunisians to take part in the polls.

“With your awareness, we will overcome challenges and move forward to make a new history,” he said.

Election commission chief Farouk Bouasker, for his part, said the voting process is taking place in a "transparent manner."

“The number of observers taking part in the polls exceeds those who took part in the (July constitutional) referendum. This is an indication of transparency,” he added.

Saturday’s parliamentary elections were boycotted by several major political parties, including the Ennahda movement, Heart of Tunisia Party, and Movement Party.

While Saied insists that his measures are meant to "save" the country, critics have accused him of orchestrating a coup.

*Ikram Imane Kouachi contributed to this report