After President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was ousted in the onset of the Arab Spring , the Ennahda Movement — led by Islamist political exile Rashid Ghannouchi — emerged as the most organized political force in Tunisia. Capitalizing on the regional rise of Islamist movements and a political ban on officials from Ben Ali's Rally for Constitutional Democracy party, Ennahda secured 89 out of 217 seats and 37 percent of the popular vote in elections for the National Constituent Assembly in October 2011 . In order to form a majority within the transitional government, Ennahda joined forces with the secular Ettakatol and Congress for the Republic parties. With control of the prime minister's post and other key positions, Ennahda was poised to play a leading role in the formation of Tunisia's new constitution, a task for the transitional government.