TUNIS, Tunisia -- Tunisia’s electoral authority on Monday definitively approved just two candidates to challenge President Kais Saied in elections next month in the struggling North African country — and one of them was promptly arrested.

Businessman Ayachi Zammel was arrested on Monday as part of an investigation into allegations of forged signatures from registered voters, his lawyer Saber Laabidi told the Associated Press. Last month, similar charges led to the arrest of the treasurer of Zammel's former political party.

Also on Monday, Tunisia's electoral authority confirmed that the upcoming presidential election on October 6th would feature only incumbent Saied, Zammel (leader of a small pro-business party), and Zouhair Maghzaoui (a former left-wing pan-Arabist parliament member). Initially, 17 individuals had sought the presidency.

Observers have expressed concern over increasing signs of democratic decline in Tunisia ahead of the campaign, which begins on September 14th. Saied has imprisoned political rivals, dissolved parliament, and rewritten the constitution, strengthening his hold on the presidency in a nation that sparked democratic uprisings across the region a decade ago, known as the Arab Spring.

The electoral authority’s decision on Monday went against a ruling last week by Tunisia’s highest administrative court. The court had ordered the reinstatement of three other candidates who had been initially disqualified by the election commission.

The electoral commission refused to reinstate the candidates, claiming on Monday that it did not receive the administrative court's verdict within the stipulated timeframe. Electoral commission president Farouk Bouaskar also cited insufficient endorsements and the lack of the required financial deposit of 10,000 dinars (3,000 euros).

Critics denounced the commission's decision as politically motivated. Faycel Bouguerra, a spokesperson for the administrative court, told local radio Diwan FM that the failure to uphold the rulings of the administrative court is unprecedented.

Members of NGOs and opposition parties staged a protest outside the offices of the electoral commission against the exclusion of the three candidates.

Among those approved were not Saied's most vocal critics: the Free Destourian Party's imprisoned leader Abir Moussi on the right and a former figure from Islamist party Ennahda Abdellatif Mekki, both of whom had submitted their candidacy.

Despite predictions of a low voter turnout, Saied has reshaped Tunisia's political landscape in recent months. Last month he dismissed a significant portion of his cabinet, and his detractors have condemned a wave of arrests and gag orders on prominent opposition figures as politically motivated.

The nation has witnessed declining political participation since Saied assumed office in 2019. Large segments of Tunisia's population continue to support him and his populist rhetoric targeting corrupt elites and foreign interference in domestic affairs. Last year's local election saw a turnout of only 11%.