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The 2011 Arab Spring’s sole success story, Tunisia holds its second-ever free presidential elections Sept. 15. But the most remarkable feature of the voters’ two-week crash course on the many candidates has been three nights of televised debates. For the first time in the Arab world, leading candidates took to a stage to debate policy and defend their track records. Across the region, the broadcasts are shattering taboos over challenging authority and raising expectations Arab citizens have of their leaders.
“This is a moment of pride for us Tunisians – a chance to remember why our revolution and struggle was all worth it,” says Walid Ben Mohammed, a Tunis taxi driver. “Rather than our next head of our state acting like they are the boss of us, he or she has to plead with us as if they are applying for a job.”
Candidates even used some of their platform to promote Tunisia’s democracy to help other Arab states embarking on a democratic transition.