Algerians to vote as Tebboune poised for easy victory

ALGIERS

Around 24 million Algerians are poised to head to the polls tomorrow for a vote in which experts say incumbent President Abdelmadjid Tebboune faces no real risk to his rule as he seeks a second term.

His main challenge, though, is achieving a higher turnout than in 2019, when he was declared president with 58 percent of the vote but with a record abstention rate of over 60 percent.

"The President is keen to have a significant turnout," Hasni Abidi, an Algeria analyst at the Geneva-based CERMAM Study Center, told AFP. "It's his main issue."

Abidi said Tebboune "has not forgotten that he was elected in 2019 with a low turnout. He wants to be a normal president and not a badly elected one," he said, referring to Tebboune's election five years ago amid the massive Hirak pro-democracy protests.

Tebboune, 78, is the clear favorite to see off moderate Islamist Abdelaali Hassani and socialist candidate Youssef Aouchiche in the race to lead the country of some 45 million people and Africa's largest exporter of natural gas.

Although he has distanced himself from political parties and is presented as an independent candidate, Tebboune's bid is backed by major political parties, including the historic FLN, which led Algeria's independence fight against France.

Hassani, a 57-year-old civil engineer, is the leader of the Movement of Society for Peace (MSP), Algeria's main Islamist party.

Aouchiche, a 41-year-old former journalist and parliamentarian, heads the Socialist Forces Front (FFS), Algeria's oldest opposition party with a historic stronghold in the Berber-majority Kabylie region. The FFS has boycotted elections in Algeria since 1999.

Polling stations abroad opened on Sept. 2, with over 800,000 Algerians set to cast their ballots overseas. Mobile stations meant to collect votes in Algeria's remote areas began their work on Sept. 4.