With mere days to go before Tunisia holds elections that critics say will further cement President Kais Saied’s dramatic power grab, the embattled Tunisian leader on Wednesday sat face to face with senior US officials in Washington alarmed by his country’s democratic backslide.

Saied met with Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the sidelines of the US-Africa Leaders Summit, a three-day gathering of dozens of African leaders aimed at boosting US ties with the continent. In remarks prior to their closed meeting, Saied defended what many have described as a coup, saying he had “no other alternative but to save the Tunisian nation” when he froze the elected parliament in July 2021 and sacked his prime minister. 

Voter apathy is running high ahead of Saturday's elections to replace the legislative body dissolved by Saied. “Unlike previous rounds, banners, slogans, and photos of candidates are not draping the sides of buildings or cluttering the streets this year,” Mohamed Ali Ltifi reports for us from Tunis.

Following a widely boycotted referendum, Tunisia approved a new constitution in July that critics say reverses the many hard-won democratic gains in the country that birthed the Arab Spring.