President of African state begins new term after landslide election win

Abdelmadjid Tebboune received over 84% of the vote in Algeria’s election on September 7

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has been sworn in for a second five-year term after winning an election in which his two opponents had alleged irregularities. President Tebboune took the oath of office on Tuesday at the Palace of Nations – in Club des Pins – a seaside resort in the capital of Algiers.

The ceremony came just three days after the country’s constitutional court confirmed Tebboune’s landslide victory in the September 7 vote, which saw just over 11 million of the more than 24 million registered people voting, a turnout of 46.1%. This is above the 39.9% recorded in the 2019 presidential election, when Tebboune was first elected, garnering 58% of the vote.

According to the certified results declared by the court on Saturday after a recount, 78-year-old Tebboune received 84.30% of the vote. His two challengers, Abdelaali Hassani Cherif and Youcef Aouchiche, who attended the swearing-in ceremony, took 9.56% and 6.14%, respectively.

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The contenders had disputed the outcome of the vote after the National Independent Authority for Elections published provisional figures showing the incumbent obtaining 94.65%, Cherif 3.17%, and Aouchiche 2.16%.

Tebboune became the oil-rich African state’s leader following the forced resignation of his predecessor, Abdulaziz Bouteflika. The latter, who died in 2021, had been in power for nearly two decades until his bid for a fifth term sparked massive street protests led by the Hirak Movement.

Critics, including Amnesty International, have accused Tebboune’s administration of political repression and human rights violations. Meanwhile, in his first term, he was credited with fulfilling promises to increase unemployment benefits, pensions, and boosting public housing programs.

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The former French colony has in recent years pushed to diversify its economy. Algeria joined the BRICS New Development Bank last month, while also pursuing membership in the BRICS group itself.

Last week, Russia’s Center for Grain Quality Assurance ranked Algeria second behind Egypt among African importers of Russian wheat by volume between January and September of this year.

In a speech following his inauguration on Tuesday, Tebboune announced ambitious targets for his new term, pledging that the country would be self-sufficient in durum wheat, barley, and corn by 2026.