This paper examines the language used in the distribution of executive powers in Tunisia’s 2014 Constitution and its impact on political stability in the first presidential term between 2014 and 2019. It relies on a critical comparative study of the linguistic choices used in explaining the mandates of both heads of the executive branch to highlight potential areas of overlap between them and to analyze the impact of this overlap on the daily jobs of the president and the head of government. The analysis of the chapter on Executive Authority confirms that (1) the boundaries between the two mandates were not clearly defined; (2) these blurred boundaries have created a rivalry between the heads of the executive branch after the Constitution went into effect; and (3) they have created a constantly dynamic party landscape inside the Parliament, which prevented the government from sustaining some degree of stability because of the constant change in the parties/blocks that supported or opposed it. These issues, stemming from a weak conception of the mandates of both heads of the executive branch as described in the chapter in focus, have hurt the relationship between the president and the head of government, and subsequently, the daily politics of Tunisia between 2014 and 2019.
June 10, 2025
