“Being a party” from afar. Tunisian pro- and anti- Ben Ali political parties in France

Based on the case study of two different Tunisian political parties acting in France under Ben Ali’s authoritarian regime (1987–2011)—the main opposition party in exile (the Islamist party Ennahda) and Ben Ali’s party-state (the Rassemblement Constitutionnel Démocratique, RCD, or Democratic Constitutional Rally)—this article explores what it means to “be a party” while partisan activities are delocalized abroad. It shows the necessity of studying the opportunities and constraints that shape the specificities of the formation and trajectories of political parties abroad. It argues that the characteristics of both the long arm of the Tunisian regime and the fluctuations of the French national environment played a determining role, each exerting an influence on the possibilities of the development of political parties abroad. This article shows that some opportunities and constraints were similar across both political parties, while some were specific to one, and that the strong link between the strategies, means of organization, and context was determined by the political parties’ identity and identification.