Preliminary results of the parliamentary elections held in 69 provinces of Algeria have been announced. According to the results, the national trend parties supporting President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and his program won a majority in the 407-seat National People's Assembly.
According to the results announced by the Deputy Chairman of the Electoral Authority, Karim Halfan, the National Liberation Front (FLN) came first with 90 seats. The National Democratic Rally (RND) was second with 73 seats, while the Future Front placed third with 59 seats. The combined seat count of these three parties was enough to secure an absolute majority in the assembly.
Independents and Islamist Party Decline
Independent candidates, who won 84 seats in the 2021 elections, this time secured only 32 seats, falling to sixth place. The rise of independents had been attributed to anger at political parties following the 2019 popular movement. However, organizational difficulties and a lack of institutional support led to a loss of votes this time.
The largest Islamist party, the Movement of Society for Peace (MSP), lost 22 seats, remaining at 43 seats and falling to fourth place. The National Construction Movement held onto fifth place with 38 seats. The Voice of the People Party, from the national trend, won 17 seats, gaining the right to form a seventh bloc in the assembly.
Opposition Returns to Parliament
The three main opposition parties that boycotted the 2021 elections returned to parliament in this election. The oldest opposition party, the Socialist Forces Front (FFS), won 12 seats; the Rally for Culture and Democracy (RCD) won 4; and the Workers' Party (PT) won 3. However, none of them crossed the 15-seat threshold to form a parliamentary group.
The number of parties in the assembly rose from 13 to 22 compared to the previous elections. This indicated that party politics had regained strength at the expense of independent candidates.
Low Turnout, High Invalid Votes
Voter turnout was 21.24 percent domestically and 10.75 percent abroad. Halfan said this rate "reflects the reality of the popular will at the ballot box" and called on political parties to "learn a lesson." He stressed that Algerian laws do not compel voters to cast ballots, but that they must be persuaded with an innovative discourse.
The number of invalid votes reached 910,230. These votes are often interpreted as an expression of rejection of all candidates and programs.
Results to Go to Constitutional Court
The Electoral Authority will send the preliminary results and all ballot documents to the Constitutional Court to rule on objections and announce the final results. According to the 2020 Constitution, the president will be able to form a government by appointing a prime minister from the parties holding the parliamentary majority. If the opposition had won a majority, the prime minister would have been chosen from the opposition and would have implemented its own program.
