The referendum was preceded by an electronic consultation regarding the nature of the political system and the method of voting in legislative elections.

[3] A preliminary draft was published soon after, but its articles were debated one at a time in sessions in December 2013 and January 2014, significantly delaying their final examination.

Frightened by the military coup in Egypt that led to the fall of Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated President Mohamed Morsi—and under pressure from the Tunisian Human Rights League, the Bar Association, and trade unions—Ennahda agreed to engage in a dialogue with the opposition forces after September 2013.

[17] During the consultation, which had very low turnout,[18] the options of a transition to a presidential system and to a uninominal majority ballot for legislative elections received the most support.

[19] On 30 March 2022, 120 deputies under the chairmanship of the second vice president of the Assembly, Tarek Fetiti [fr],[20] met in a virtual session to vote to end the exceptional measures in force since 25 July.

Upon the passing of this law, a constitutional referendum was announced for 25 July 2022, despite criticism from the opposition, in order to make Saied's changes official.

[30] On 3 July, Belaïd announced that the text submitted for the referendum was not the one drawn up and presented by the commission, adding that it contained "considerable risks and shortcomings".

[32] On the subject of Article 5, which was modified from the preliminary draft, Belaïd denounced a risk of "reconstruction of the power of the religious" and a "return to the dark ages of Islamic civilization".

Among the changes made, the phrase "within the framework of a democratic system" was added to Article 5 in order to mitigate that of the "principles of Islam",[34] and the allusion to "good morals" present in the draft text was expunged.

On the day of the vote, Saied made a declaration broadcast on national television in which he explained certain points of the draft constitution, thus breaking electoral silence.

Before the publication of the draft constitution, the People's Movement called on Tunisians to participate in the referendum, without taking a position.

[59] Before the publication of the draft constitution, Afek Tounes called for participation in the referendum to vote against the "political project" of the president.

[63] The party also denounced violations of the electoral code when posters and banners in favor of the "Yes" campaign showed the Tunisian flag.

[70] These four associations and unions were among the 42 signatories of the Civil Coalition for Freedom, Dignity, Social Justice and Equality, founded on 18 July 2022 to fight against the referendum.

[74] After the publication of the draft constitution, the party reiterated its position on the referendum, which it described as an attempt to subvert the will of the people and give false legitimacy to an authoritarian government.

[75][76] The Free Destourian Party refused to recognize the referendum[77] and filed a complaint against the chairman of the advisory commission,[78] Sadok Belaïd, and a member, Amine Mahfoudh, accusing them of fraud and trying to illegitimately change Tunisia's form of government.

[80] The National Salvation Front—a coalition made up of several political parties, including Ennahda, Al Amal, the Dignity Coalition, Heart of Tunisia, and the Citizens movement against the coup of 25 July 2021,[81] as well as members of civil society, and chaired by Ahmed Najib Chebbi—called for a boycott of the referendum, the process of which it described as "illegal and unconstitutional".

[83] The Workers' Party accused Saied of wanting to consolidate a totalitarian regime, describing the draft as a "masquerade" and calling for a boycott.

[1] On the opposite end of the spectrum, the National Salvation Front called on Saied to resign, stating that the referendum was a failure given the low turnout.

[7] Blinken added that the United States shared the concerns of many Tunisians that the process of drafting the new constitution had limited genuine debate, stressing that the US would continue to strongly support Tunisia's democratic transition.

[10] In response, the Tunisian Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the chargé d'affaires at the US Embassy in Tunis, Natasha Franceschi,[11] to publish a formal protest against Blinken's statements.