Algeria: Some electoral statistics

According to government sources the electoral roll, which cannot be  accessed by candidates or electoral monitors for reasons of “data  protection” (see below, fraud), listed 22,880,678 voters of which  21,871,678 are registered in Algeria while 1,009,000 are registered  as living abroad. The authorities mobilised 11,756 polling centres and 49,971 polling stations, including 167 mobile stations. 398 of these polling stations were abroad.

Some 460,000 civil servants were mobilised to officiate at the elections. Polling centres and stations were open from 8 am to 7 pm. Wallis had the discretion to open one hour earlier and extend voting by one hour.

Algerians abroad could vote from last Saturday up until Thursday. Nomads in remote areas (e.g. Tamanrasset, Illizi, Adrar) could vote at 167 mobile stations between Monday and Thursday. Some 59,000 nomads are involved. Bouteflika cast his vote at El Biar in Algiers and was helped into the polling station in a wheel-chair. It was the first time he has appeared in public since his election address at Setif on 8 May 2012 which is almost two years ago. 

For more news and expert analysis about Algeria, please see Algeria Focus and Algeria Politics & Security.

© 2014 Menas Associates

Algeria: Over 25,000 candidates to contest the 10 May elections

While events in neighbouring Mali are dominating the local press, the Algerian election is now less than six weeks away and, although there is little genuine interest, getting a respectable turnout remains the governments' principal concern. According to data released by the Interior Ministry at the end of this week, which we have not been able to verify, around 25,800 candidates will contest the 462 parliamentary seats in the 10 May 10 legislative elections.

The ministry issued a statement saying that 2,053 lists of candidates had been received by 26 March which was the deadline for the submission of lists. According to the statement, 1,842 lists covered 44 political parties of which 21 were new parties approved and registered in January. The remaining 211 lists were for independent candidates.

A total of 7,646 of the 25,800 candidates are female which means that the female-male gender split of candidates is 30.18% and 69.82% respectively.

The lists will now be examined by those in charge of the election (i.e. the government) until 10 April. The rejected lists can appeal before the Administrative Court before 14 April with the election campaign officially beginning on April 15.

For more news and expert analysis about Algeria, please see Algeria Focus and Algeria Politics & Security.

© 2012 Menas Associates

Algeria: How the vote will be rigged

There are few who believe that the 10 May legislative elections will not be rigged in one way or another. It is not particularly important to the regime how the votes are distributed between parties, as the lower elected Chamber has only minimal real power. The vote will, therefore, be rigged to increase the turnout figure.

There are already clear indications that the regime is using a customary way of 'loading the ballot' by reallocating members of the security forces – army, gendarmerie, police – and other state functionaries to different constituencies so that their vote can be registered in at least two places.

In theory, this practice can be checked by astute observers but, because Algeria keeps a tight lid on all matters relating to its security forces and their movements, it is, in practice, difficult for observers, especially from other countries, to check such details.

In practice, and according to our sources in Algeria, this election could see as many as 500,000 votes being 'doubly registered' in this way. That is the approximate size of the country's security forces. Not all of them will be moved around in this way, but they are likely to be joined by a large number of other state employees.

The addition of some half a million extra votes to the overall ballot could make a significant difference to the regime's efforts to 'beat the boycott' and get a turnout figure around 50%. On a national roll, which is currently estimated by opposition sources as somewhere around 16-17 million, an extra half million votes could shift the turnout percentage by possibly as much as 9%, enough to increase it from around 40% to around 50%; this would enable the regime to breathe a sigh of relief. With other likely methods of ballot stuffing, the regime might possibly get the turnout up to 55-60% which would be very satisfactory for Algeria's Western allies.

For more news and expert analysis about Algeria, please see Algeria Focus and Algeria Politics & Security.

© 2012 Menas Associates