President of Tunisia facts for kids

Quick facts for kids President of the Republic of Tunisia
Presidential standard
Presidential seal
Incumbent Kais Saied since 23 October 2019
Executive branch of the Government of the Republic of Tunisia Head of state of the Republic of Tunisia
Style	His Excellency
Residence	Carthage Palace, Carthage
Term length	Five years, renewable once
Inaugural holder	Habib Bourguiba
Formation	25 July 1957; 67 years ago (1957-07-25)
Salary	US$90,380 annually

The President of Tunisia is the country's main leader, like a principal for a school or a captain for a team. This important job started on July 25, 1957. The president helps run the country with a team led by the Prime Minister. They are also the boss of Tunisia's army. People vote for the president every five years, and they can be re-elected once.

The first president was Habib Bourguiba. He was president for 30 years! Later, his prime minister, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, became president. Ben Ali was president for 23 years. He left office during the Tunisian revolution in 2011. After him, Fouad Mebazaa was a temporary president. Then, Moncef Marzouki became the first president chosen by a special assembly.

Marzouki passed the role to Beji Caid Essebsi in 2014. Essebsi was the second president chosen directly by the people. He was president until he passed away in 2019. Then, Mohamed Ennaceur took over temporarily. The current President of Tunisia is Kais Saied. He has been president since October 23, 2019.

History of Tunisia's Presidents

Since Tunisia became a republic in 1959, it has had several presidents. The first was Habib Bourguiba. He was already the country's leader since 1956. He was elected president in 1959. In 1975, he was even named president for life!

In 1987, Prime Minister Zine El Abidine Ben Ali took over. This happened because Bourguiba was said to be too unwell to continue. Ben Ali was then elected president and stayed in power until 2011. He left office during a big uprising against his rule.

In 2014, Tunisia held its first truly free presidential election. Beji Caid Essebsi won this election. For a long time, Tunisia did not have much political freedom. Elections often showed very high support for the ruling party. This made it hard for other candidates to run.

Tunisia's first constitution gave the president a lot of power. They were almost like a dictator. There were no limits on how many times a president could be elected. In 1975, Bourguiba was named president for life. Later, a rule was added that a president could only serve three five-year terms. But this rule was removed in 2002.

The 2014 Constitution changed things. It still made the president important. But it added many rules to stop anyone from having too much power. Now, a president can only serve two five-year terms. This rule cannot be changed.

Under the current rules, the president mainly handles foreign policy, defense, and national security. The prime minister handles things inside the country. After Ben Ali left in 2011, Fouad Mebazaa became the temporary president. In December 2011, Moncef Marzouki was chosen as the interim president by a special assembly.

How Tunisian Presidents Are Elected

The president is chosen by a public vote. This election happens in the last 60 days of the current president's term. To become a candidate, a person must be a Tunisian citizen and at least 35 years old. They must also be Muslim. If elected, they must give up any other nationalities they might have.

The election uses a "two-round" system. If no candidate gets more than half of the votes in the first round, there's a second round. This second round happens within two weeks. The two candidates with the most votes from the first round compete again. The one who gets the most votes in the second round becomes president.

If a candidate dies before the election, new elections are planned. This must happen within 45 days. A person cannot be president for more than two full terms. Even if they resign, that term still counts as a full term.

List of Presidents

No.	Portrait	Name	Start of term	End of term	Political affiliation	Notes
1	Habib Bourguiba	Habib Bourguiba (1903–2000)	25 July 1957	7 November 1987	Neo-Destour	Habib Bourguiba became the first president when Tunisia became a republic in 1957. He was elected president in 1959. In 1975, he was named president for life. He was removed from office in 1987 by his prime minister, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
					SDP
2	Zine El Abidine Ben Ali	Zine El Abidine Ben Ali (1936–2019)	7 November 1987	14 January 2011	SDP	Ben Ali was Prime Minister before becoming president. He took over from President Bourguiba. He left office in 2011 during the Tunisian revolution. He then went to live in Saudi Arabia.
					DCR
(-)	Fouad Mebazaa	Fouad Mebazaa (b. 1933)	15 January 2011	13 December 2011	DCR	Fouad Mebazaa became the temporary president after Ben Ali left. He helped set up a new assembly to guide the country.
					Independent
3	Moncef Marzouki	Moncef Marzouki (b. 1945)	13 December 2011	31 December 2014	CFR	Moncef Marzouki was the first president after the revolution. He was also the first president not from the ruling party since Tunisia became independent.
4	Beji Caid Essebsi	Beji Caid Essebsi (1926–2019)	31 December 2014	25 July 2019 †	Nidaa Tounes	Beji Caid Essebsi won the 2014 election. He was the first president chosen directly by the people after the revolution. He passed away while in office in 2019.
(-)	Mohamed Ennaceur	Mohamed Ennaceur (b. 1934)	25 July 2019	23 October 2019	Nidaa Tounes	Mohamed Ennaceur served as a temporary president for a short time.
5	Kais Saied	Kais Saied (b. 1958)	23 October 2019	present	Independent	Kais Saied won the 2019 election. He is the first independent president. He was also the first president born after Tunisia gained independence.

Latest Election Results

See also

• Tunisia
  • List of beys of Tunis
  • List of French residents-general in Tunisia
  • List of presidents of Tunisia
  • First Lady of Tunisia
  • Prime Minister of Tunisia
• Lists of office-holders
• List of current heads of state and government