A new parliamentary bloc of around 40 deputies is about to be formed to support the candidature of Prime Minister Youssef Chahed for the presidential race in 2019, according to MP Walid Jalled, an independent deputy who resigned from Al Horra bloc of Mohsen Marzouk’s Harakt Machrou Tounes. Jalled said talks are in progress to form the new bloc, expected to be the third force in the Parliament following the two parties: Nidaa Tounes and Ennahda Party, also known as Renaissance Party. The deputy added that a press conference would be held early next week to make the announcement and provide details. In case this bloc is formed, it would meet with Ennahda MPs to support the candidacy of Chahed and his government. However, a dispute could emerge between the two parties over the future role of the Prime Minister, particularly that Ennahdha had asked Chahed to respect the party’s decision not to run for the presidency next year. A number of deputies from the new parliamentary bloc, which includes deputies from the National Bloc, Al Horra and the Free Patriotic Union (UPL) of businessmen and politician Slim Riahi, have announced their support for Chahed. Last June, President Beji Caid Essebsi publicly withdrew his support for Chahed, blaming him for the country’s economic crisis. Pressure to oust Chahed had been mainly led by the president’s son, Hafedh Essebsi, the executive director of Nidaa Tounes, the political party which his father helped found in 2012. Meanwhile, Nidaa Tounes and Mashrou Tounes agreed to form a parliamentary bloc to counter Ennahda Movements political expansion. In case the deputies of the two parties allied in one bloc, their total number would reach 76, exceeding the number of Ennahda Movement members, which is 69. Ratification of laws requires the approval of 109 out of 217 deputies.