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Algeria
Bouteflika wins third term as President
Article published on the 2009-04-10 Latest update 2009-04-10 12:05 TU
President Abdelaziz Bouteflika casting his vote on 9 April 2009
(Photo: Reuters)
President Bouteflika took more than 90.24 per cent in the elections, and begins his third consecutive term as the leader of the African country.
Turnout for the vote was just less than 75 per cent, according to an announcement by Interior Minister Yazid Zehouni on Friday. This is an increase on 2004, when he secured 58 per cent of the vote, with a turnout of 85 per cent.
Political opponents have been critical of the election, with some boycotting the polls. Incidents in the country caused some disruption on Thursday with an explosion in Naceria, 50 kilometres from Algiers, injuring two police officers.
“We’re not talking about a mass-based movement, there are a small number of very radicalised militants, who will strike whenever they can, I wouldn’t overreact,” says William Quandt, a specialist in Algerian politics.
“I think the more important way in which most Algerians will show their distaste for the lack of democracy, the lack of transparency and lack of participation, is simply by not voting,” he added.
Analysis: William Quandt, University of Virginia
Bouteflika cast his vote on Thursday morning in the Algiers El Biar neighbourhood. And before the elections he was hoping to strengthen his position through a higher turnout.
“They don’t believe that politics really works very well, if there were any honest, free election in Algeria, I’m not sure that Bouteflika wouldn’t be the winner in any case,” Quandt told RFI.
Louisa Hanoune, the only female candidate, was Bouteflika’s closest rival. Her Trotskyite Workers’ Party took 4.22 per cent of the vote.
There has been some criticism of the Algerian premier, who first came to power in 1999. Bouteflika changed the constitution in 2008 to allow himself to run a third term in office. Already some opponents have disputed the turnout figures.
An Algerian election worker counting ballots on 9 April 2009
(Photo: Reuters)
“Algeria has not had a good experience with democracy and he is not a democrat by inclination, he’s not a Saddam Hussein however,” says Quandt, from the University of Virginia.
Some Algerians are happy for Bouteflika, who was a key figure in the Algerian independence movement, to hold office for another five years.
“I think he has done a couple of things that Algerians appreciate, first the level of violence is way down compared to where it was […] Algeria has benefitted from the oil boom, and he has invested most of it in long-delayed infrastructure projects, and some of that is getting him credit,” Quandt told RFI.
France congratulated Bouteflika on his re-election, but would not comment on disputed turnout figures.
Apart from Hanoune, none of the other four opposition parties took more than 2.5 per cent of the vote.
