Algeria’s elections on track for historic abstention record
Algeria’s parliamentary elections on July 2ndhave already delivered a telling verdict: with one of the potentially lowest turnouts in the country’s history, the vote speaks volumes about the state of a politically tense nation. According to France 24 on July 3rd, if these numbers are confirmed, they signify an important message for President Tebboune, who hoped these elections would be a confirmation of his legitimacy and government.
Provisional president of the Independent Algerian Authority of Elections (Anie), Karim Khelfane explained that these numbers are only provisional and may change as the official results will come out in the next days. Abstention was one of the main challenges for the elections; the vote was extended by one hour in order to get more people to vote.
More than 25 million Algerians were eligible to vote, with about 850 000 located outside of the country.
In the centre of the capital, Algiers, polling stations were reportedly nearly empty. The elections as a whole were tinted by controversy over the barring of many political figures of the opposition, as well as people who participated in the Harki protests of 2019, which ousted autocrat Boutelflika.
The Minister of the Interior, Said Sayoud, called all Algerians to go and vote in the afternoon.
As Algerians have expressed widespread disappointment about their current government, this vote would be a legitimacy and trust indicator, a sensor showing the trust Algerians have in Tebboune and the National Liberation Front, the ruling party since Algeria’s independence from France in 1962.
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% to show some signs of political normalisation after the turmoil of the Hirak, while a figure below 20% would be particularly negative.
France 24 and agencies, Maghrebi.org
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