Algeria: Can the opposition challenge the status quo?

On the 2nd of July, Algerians will be called upon to vote in the parliamentary elections. Hope for change is faint, but some still aspire that these elections could mark a new political opening. 

According to Middle East Eye on the 4th of June, one of the biggest challenges for these elections, and particularly for the government, is to reverse a trend. The last parliamentary elections in 2021 were marked by a record abstention rate; only 23% of eligible voters participated, while most opposition parties boycotted the elections.

Essentially, the government would consider a turnout above 35% shows some signs of political normalisation after the turmoil of the Hirak, while a figure below 20% would be particularly negative. 

The Hirak was a popular uprising in 2019 that ousted the long-time autocrat Abdelaziz Boutelflika in 2019. Ever since, the establishment of a democratic regime has been a difficult enterprise. 

The national assembly, which will be holding its 10th elections since Algeria’s independence from France in 1962, has traditionally been dominated by parties favorising the establishment. 

The National Liberation Front (FLN), the former single ruling party emerging from the war of independence, controls over a quarter of the outgoing assembly, with 105 seats out of 407.  Following behind is the Movement of Society for Peace (MSP), an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, with 64 seats. The third largest party is the National Democratic Rally (RND), established by government officials to support the ruling elite, which comprises 57 seats.

Algerian journalist Ali Boukhef told MEE that “through the legislative elections, the Algerian regime wants to project the image of a democratic pluralistic state”, adding authorities are “counting on a decent turnout to legitimise an election seen as already tilted in favour of the ruling parties”.

Since the Hirak, which installed a brief period of democratic change, political parties and journalists have raised concerns about a shutdown of the media and political spheres. 

On March 9th, a new law was adopted, which the opposition accused of strengthening the government’s control over the political arena. Lacks of debates, refusals of permits for political rallies and censorship have, over time, created an inefficient political system. Moreover, filtering practices are underlying, rejecting candidacies of opposition members for bureaucratic or arbitrary reasons.

Algerian authorities have been accused by NGO’s of restricting rights and freedom by resorting to arbitrary arrests and unfair trials. 

For the once boycotting parties, these new elections after their 5-year absence represent a way to affirm their importance and necessity, particularly after willingly showing what their absence meant for Algerian politics and international image.

Middle East Eye, Maghrebi.org