By Miguel Albarracin
Tunis, Nov 24 (IANS/EFE): Secular candidate Beji Caid Essebsi is the projected winner of the presidential election held in Tunisia Sunday with almost 48 percent of the vote, according to exit polls.
A representative of the opinion poll agency 3C declared on national television that Essebsi, leader of the party Nidaa Tounes which has already won in the legislative elections, would get 47.80 percent of the votes against 27 percent for incumbent President Moncef Marzuki.
The agency also revealed that the leader of the Popular Front, Hama Hammani, would get 10.20 percent and Eslim Riahi, of the Free Patriotic Union, 5.40 percent.
According to these estimates, a failure by Essebsi, 88, to secure an absolute majority of 50 percent or more could lead to a run-off with Marzuki.
A Tunisian digital newspaper has reported that another exit poll also points to Essebsi as the winner but without a sufficient majority.
Essebsi, the favourite to win the elections and a veteran politician known for his liberal views, based his campaign on offering a secular and democratic alternative.
The elections were held with few incidents reported with a voter turnout of 64.60 percent.
The spokesperson of the Tunisian Association for the Integrity and Democracy of Elections, Huda Meheni, said that observers from the organisation were denied access to the polling stations in the regions of Nefta, Beja and Testour.
At least 56 polling stations were closed earlier due to security issues in the regions of Tenduba, Kasserine and Al-Kaf on the border with Algeria as well as areas where terrorists took refuge two years ago.
At a press conference, the Independent Higher Authority for the Elections (ISIE) said the final results of the presidential elections would be announced at the Palace of Congress which is also the press and information centre.
According to the ISIE, which has three days to declare the results, national and international observers of the elections, representatives of the candidates and the media will have access to the final count of polls in the 27 national constituencies and the five abroad which will be broadcast on the two national television stations.
In the elections, some 5.28 million citizens turned out to vote at 11,000 polling stations.