A candidate in Tunisia’s upcoming presidential election has been sentenced to 12 years in prison, according to his lawyer.

Ayachi Zammel, a former lawmaker who heads a small liberal party, was jailed in four cases related to voter endorsements, his legal representative, Abdessater Massoudi said on Tuesday.

It is the third prison sentence imposed on Zammel in two weeks, according to the lawyer, who insisted that his client “remains a candidate in the election” which will take place on October 6.

Last Wednesday, the Criminal Chamber of the Jendouba Court of First Instance sentenced Zammel to six months for “deliberately using a fraudulent certificate,” according to Tunisia’s TAP news agency.

At the time, Massoudi told the Reuters news agency that it was “another unjust ruling and a farce that clearly aims to weaken him in the election race” and he pledged to defend Zammel’s right to take part in the vote.

On September 18, his lawyer said Zammel had been handed a 20-month prison term for falsifying the signatures he gathered to file the candidacy papers needed to run for president.

To appear on the ballot, candidates are required to present a list of signatures either from 10,000 registered voters, 10 parliamentarians or 40 local officials.

Zammel was arrested on September 2, just before an announcement by Tunisia’s electoral authority ISIE that he had made it onto the final list of candidates.

Power grab

The rulings underscore mounting tensions in the run-up to the vote.

Opposition and civil society groups have been voicing concerns about a potentially rigged election, designed to keep President Kais Saied in power.

ISIE rejected the bids of about 14 hopefuls for the election, leaving only Zammel and Zouhair Maghzaoui, of the left-wing nationalist People’s Movement, to challenge Saied.

The incumbent and frontrunner is seeking a second term. He initially took office in a 2019 election, but then orchestrated a sweeping power grab in 2021, shutting down parliament and ruling by decree. Several opposition figures have been jailed.

The treasurer of Zammel’s Azimoun party was arrested in August on similar charges to the leader.