How a Professor Upset Tunisian Politics With Help of Angry Youth
- Constitutional law expert led first round of presidential vote
- Kais Saied gains from rage at elite eight years after uprising
Photographer: Michael Gunn/Bloomberg
This article is for subscribers only.
It took an austere law professor to channel the burning injustices of a generation disillusioned by the failures of the Arab Spring into an insurgent campaign that dealt a stinging rebuke to Tunisia’s political establishment.
After a buildup that scarcely registered with the media, at the ballot box 61-year-old Kais Saied saw off nearly two dozen rivals seeking to lead Tunisia, including several with top government credentials. If he wins a runoff with his closest opponent, the presidency of one of the Arab world’s rare democracies will be his.