Intel: Conservative law professor wins landslide in Tunisia presidential runoff

A conservative law professor known for his probity and prudish views on same-sex relationships was elected in a landslide in today’s presidential runoff in Tunisia. Exit polls from Sigma Conseil showed Kais Saied winning with 77% of the vote compared with 23% for media magnate Nabil Karoui. 

Max Gallien, an analyst who closely monitors Tunisia, noted that another exit poll by Emrhod Consulting suggests that Saied won every single governorate and was particularly strong in the country’s south. 

Why it matters:

Saied’s resounding victory speaks to Tunisia’s rejection of the status quo, already signaled in the miserable performance of the  mostly secular parties who have led the country since 2014, with one notable exception, the pro-Islamic Ennahda. Some 90% of voters ages 18-25 cast their ballots for the 61-year-old Saied, according to Youssef Cherif, a Tunis based analysts and head of Columbia Global Centers, Tunis. Saied, who frowns on equal inheritance rights for females, has progressive views on radically decentralizing power.