On the same day, President Kais Saied dismissed the government of Hichem Mechichi and suspended the activities of the Assembly, using the emergency powers provided for in article 80 of the Constitution of Tunisia.

[5] The country's largest parliamentary party, Ennahda, and its leader, Assembly Speaker Rached Ghannouchi, condemned the president's actions, calling them a coup d'état.

[7] On 22 September, Saied confirmed by decree the extension of the validity of the decisions, as well as the dissolution of the Provisional Body Responsible for Checking the Constitutionality of Bills [fr], and decided to suspend the payment of wages and benefits provided to the chairman of the Assembly of Representatives of the People and its members,[8] and granted himself the right to rule by decree, de facto restoring legislative power.

[12][13][14] On 30 March 2022, 120 deputies, under the chairmanship of the second vice-president of the Assembly Tarek Fetiti,[15] met in a virtual session to vote for the end of the exceptional measures in force since 25 July.

The same day, Kaïs Saïed dissolved Parliament, which the Constitution forbids during the period when the state of exception is applied, and threatens the deputies with legal proceedings.

[21] The 217 members of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People were previously elected by closed list proportional representation in 33 multi-member constituencies (27 in Tunisia and 6 representing Tunisian expatriates) with seats allocated using the largest remainder method and a mandated zipper system: alternating female and male candidates on the list, and a male and female candidate under the age of 35 in the top four in constituencies with four or more seats.

Additionally, publicly funded elections were abolished, meaning private support and self-financing must be used, and the law introduced recall referendums, which can be triggered if signatures equal to 10% voters who voted for them submit a request in favor of one to the parliament.

[35] It also compares the legislative elections to an appointment of members of a "council similar to that of the Shura, as in Islamist countries" and condemns the non-respect of international standards in the process.

[41] The National Syndicate of Tunisian Journalists denounces the situation of the confiscated media and threatens to boycott the election in the event of a lack of dialogue with the government.

[60] Following the denunciation of these prohibitions by politicians,[61][62] the Head of State specifies that political parties can participate in the electoral campaign but only by supporting them in a personal capacity.

[66] On 26 October the secretary general of the People's Movement Zouhair Maghzaoui announced that his party will present candidates in at least 120 constituencies, including deputies from the last legislature.

[67][68] On 6 October 2022, the ISIE announced that some potential legislative candidates had attempted to illegally obtain sponsorships by exploiting public resources, abusing their power or in return for compensation.

Faced with this affair, Kais Saied compares sponsorships to "merchandise that is sold and bought" and evokes, on 8 October 2022, the need to amend the electoral law a second time.

On 10 October, the vice-president of the ISIE Maher Jedidi confirms that the presidency of the Republic is preparing a new amendment to the electoral law and that the independent body will have an advisory role when it is ready.

[78] The rejection of the political class in general, coupled with the calls for a boycott on the part of the main parties as well as the disinterest in an assembly with considerably restricted powers, lead as expected to a massive disaffection of the voters, who are more concerned about the economic conditions which affect the country.