After three gloomy weeks of electoral campaign, more than 23 million Algerians are called upon to choose, Saturday, November 27, their elected municipal and departmental.

An important vote in the eyes of power to turn the page on the end of the eventful reign of the late ex-president Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

Polling stations opened at 8 a.m. and will close at 7 p.m.

The official results are expected to be announced on Sunday.

In the capital, with the exception of a few posters and rallies in closed rooms, the candidates were not very active.

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According to the National Independent Election Authority (ANIE), 15,230 candidates are running in the 1,541 municipalities.

They will also be 18,910 postulants to compete for the departmental seats in 58 prefectures.

Women represent only 15% of all applications, according to ANIE.

"Do you want change?", "Institutional building", "sign and put your mark": this is the official slogan of this double ballot.

A slogan criticized by the political scientist and former professor of political science, Mohamed Hennad, who would have preferred themes based "on the values ​​of citizenship".

Third ballot

For the political scientist, the government insists on "imposing its will despite the dishonorable results recorded in previous polls".

This is the third election organized under the presidency of Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who has pledged to reform all the institutions inherited from the 20-year reign of Bouteflika, forced to resign in April 2019 under pressure from the movement's demonstrations pro-democracy Hirak and the army.

On July 5, Algeria's Independence Day, President Tebboune, elected in December 2019 with 58% of the vote and a participation rate of barely 40%, ensured that his action was in the wake of 'an authentic "blessed Hirak".

In a first step, President Tebboune passed constitutional amendments in a referendum on November 1, 2020, approved by only 23.7% of voters.

Second step: the early legislative elections of June 12, also marked by a historic abstention with 23% participation rate.

"Participate with force"

The third stage of the process, the local elections, should attract more voters to the polls.

"I hope that the citizens participate with force in these elections", declared President Tebboune, during an interview with Algerian media broadcast on Friday evening by official television.

"If the people want change, it is high time that they operate it themselves on the occasion of this deadline," he said on Friday.

"These elections are distinguished from the legislative ones by the direct relationship (of elected officials) with the citizen and his concerns", analyzed for AFP Nabila Benyahia, teacher in political science, believing that they will make it possible to measure the level of confidence between the citizen and power.

However, if "the power affirms to want a change in response to Hirak, it retained only the word 'to change'", commented the political scientist Hennad, considering that it had "imposed its agenda in an atmosphere of political monologue n 'involving political forces only formally'.

The expected turnout in Kabylia, a region that boycotted previous polls, should boost turnout.

The Front des forces socialistes (FFS, the oldest opposition party), presents candidates in this region which is one of its main strongholds.

Independents, including former leaders of the Rally for Culture and Democracy (RCD), also participate in the ballot while the party officially boycotts the municipal elections.

Participation is not the major issue of this election, nuance Redouane Boudjemaa, teacher at the Faculty of Information and Communication Sciences of Algiers.

These are rather the "great economic and social challenges of next year," he told AFP.

"The collapse of purchasing power will lead to an upsurge in union protests," said Redouane Boudjemaa.

With AFP

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