Algeria’s electoral authority is set to announce later Sunday presidential poll results which incumbent Abdelmadjid Tebboune is expected to breeze through, amid accusations of efforts to “inflate results”.Tebboune, 78, is heavily favoured to secure a second term, in the race against moderate Islamist Abdelaali Hassani, 57, and socialist candidate Youcef Aouchiche, 41.His main challenge was to boost voter participation in Saturday’s vote after a historic abstention rate of over 60 percent in 2019.That year, Tebboune became president amid widely boycotted elections and mass pro-democracy Hirak protests that later died out under his tenure with ramped-up policing and hundreds put in jail.Both of Tebboune’s challengers had called for a large turnout Saturday morning, hoping to end “the boycott” and make the elections “credible” as more than 24 million Algerians were registered to vote.But it remained unclear by Sunday afternoon how many people in total had turned out to cast their ballot.Early Sunday morning the electoral authority ANIE announced an “average turnout” rate of 48 percent, calling it “provisional”, but it did not give a breakdown of the number of voters against those initially registered.It said it would announce the official turnout rate later during the day.The announcement came three hours behind schedule after the election board said on Saturday evening that it was extending voting by one hour, expecting more voters to show up.ANIE had also announced an “average” participation of 26 percent by 17:00 pm — which would have compared to 33 percent by that time of day in the 2019 elections.Hassani’s campaign on Sunday said in a statement that ANIE’s provisional turnout was “strange” and denounced attempts to “inflate the results”.”The president has been 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.After voting in Algiers Saturday morning, the incumbent president did not mention turnout, saying only that he hoped “Algeria will win in any case”.Voters meanwhile expressed hopes that the election would transform things on the ground.”We want this election to result in a real change… a change for the better,” said voter Hassane Boudaoud, 52.”We’re optimistic that the next president will pay great attention to our concerns,” he added.- ‘Divorced politics’ -“I came early to exercise my duty and choose the president of my country in a democratic manner,” Sidali Mahmoudi, a 65-year-old early voter, told AFP.Seghir Derouiche, 72, told AFP that not voting was “ignoring one’s right”.Two women, Taous Zaiedi, 66, and Leila Belgaremi, 42, said they were voting to “improve the country”.With young people making up more than half the population, all three candidates have courted their votes with promises to improve living standards and reduce dependence on hydrocarbons.Tebboune has touted economic successes during his first term, including more jobs and higher wages in Africa’s largest exporter of natural gas.He has pledged to create 450,000 jobs and increase monthly unemployment benefits if re-elected.Launched in 2022, unemployment benefits now provide 13,000 dinars ($97) to people aged 19 to 40, and Tebboune has promised to raise this to 20,000 dinars — currently the minimum wage.But young people were rather scarce in the polling stations, despite free public transport and urgent calls to vote.”Voters wondered what was the point of voting when all predictions are in favour of the president,” said analyst Hasni Abidi, calling the candidates’ bids “mediocre”.He said Tebboune “barely did four rallies”, while his challengers “weren’t up to the task”.”Not voting does not mean political opposition,” he added. “Rather, it means people did not see themselves as part of the electoral game.”The analyst said Tebboune should address the major deficit in political and media freedoms, with Algerians having “divorced current politics” after the Hirak protests ended.Watchdog Amnesty International said earlier this week Algerian authorities were continuing to “stifle civic space by maintaining a severe repression of human rights”.Five years after the Hirak, Algeria has seen “new arbitrary arrests” while authorities maintain “a zero tolerance approach to dissenting opinions”.Dozens remain behind bars or are still being prosecuted due to their activism, according to prisoners’ rights group CNLD.
