On 6 July, Algeria’s Independent National Electoral Authority (ANIE) released provisional results from the 2 July legislative elections. The National Liberation Front (FLN) won 90 of the 407 seats in the People’s National Assembly, retaining its position as the largest party, while the National Democratic Rally (RND) secured 73 seats, a gain of 15. Domestic turnout was confirmed at 21.24 per cent, the lowest figure recorded since independence, and more than 920,000 ballots were declared invalid across the country and diaspora voting stations.

ANIE’s interim president, Karim Khelfane, defended the integrity of the process, describing the elections as transparent and arguing that abstention is not unique to Algeria, pointing to similar patterns in what he called “old democracies” in Europe, the Americas and Asia. A sharply different interpretation came from former minister and diplomat Abdelaziz Rahabi, who told Algerian media that the turnout figure should not be reduced to a statistic. He attributed the disengagement to a decades-long erosion of citizen trust in representative institutions and called for a comprehensive reassessment of how political parties, trade unions and the press can be revitalised as spaces for genuine political expression rather than mere electoral machinery.

The seat distribution confirms that a bloc of parties supporting President Abdelmadjid Tebboune’s programme will command a clear majority, meaning the head of state is constitutionally obliged to appoint a prime minister rather than a head of government. The FLN lost eight seats compared with the 2021 ballot, while the RND rose from fourth to second place. The Future Front (Front El Moustakbal) jumped to 59 seats, overtaking the Islamist Movement of Society for Peace (MSP), which fell from 65 to 43 seats. Independents, who had been the second-largest force in the outgoing chamber, collapsed from 84 to 32 seats. Women won only 23 seats, a drop that Algerian press reports describe as the lowest in years and which raises questions about the effectiveness of official measures to promote female political participation.

The election was held during a low-key campaign overshadowed by the football World Cup and a heatwave. It was the first legislative vote since the Hirak protest movement of 2019–2020 forced the resignation of president Abdelaziz Bouteflika and demanded systemic change. In the intervening years, authorities banned street demonstrations, citing Covid-19 restrictions, and imprisoned leading Hirak figures. International human rights organisations have documented a reassertion of state control over public space. The electoral authority also disqualified roughly 3,000 of 7,000 prospective candidates under new rules on political financing and ethics, a step Algerian media described as unprecedented.

The provisional results must be validated by the Constitutional Court. The new assembly is expected to convene in the coming weeks, after which President Tebboune will name a prime minister. The record-low turnout and the high number of spoiled ballots are likely to intensify domestic debate over the legislature’s representativeness.