Algerian legislative elections: Key factors

Algerians head to the polls on Thursday to elect 407 deputies for the National People's Assembly, with a key challenge being to significantly increase voter turnout from the historic low of 23.03% recorded in 2021.

The current lower house is dominated by the ruling National Liberation Front (FLN), holding 164 seats, and the National Democratic Rally (RND) with 100 seats. These parties have traditionally aligned with the executive branch. The remaining seats are distributed among smaller parties, some officially in opposition but largely operating within the established political framework. These include the moderate Islamist Movement Society for Peace (MSP) and the nationalist-centrist El Moustakbal Front, which supported President Abdelmadjid Tebboune's re-election.

Parties considered more critical of the government, such as the Socialist Forces Front (FFS), the Workers' Party (PT), and the Rally for Culture and Democracy (RCD), hold minor parliamentary representation. Their members report facing constant administrative obstacles. These smaller factions, along with a variable number of independent deputies, collectively struggle to significantly influence legislative proposals, which are typically advanced by the dominant FLN and RND.

Algerians living abroad, numbering close to one million, hold particular influence in these elections. They are responsible for electing a dozen seats, an increase of four compared to previous elections, following a reform of the electoral law and a reorganization of districts based on demographic density. Voting for the diaspora began on June 27 and will continue until July 2, with authorities reporting its success in Algerian embassies worldwide, particularly in France.

The election campaign, which ran from June 9 to June 28, focused on socio-economic policies. However, the overall atmosphere has been marked by a noticeable lack of electoral engagement, despite state institutions' efforts to encourage citizen participation.