^{Abdelmadjid Tebboune. Photo}

After being declared the winner of Algeria’s election, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune joined his two opponents in criticizing the election authority, AP News reported on September 9th. He pointed out that the announced results conflicted with earlier turnout figures and local counts.

Claims of irregularities cloud what seemed like a landslide re-election for the 78-year-old president.

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On Sunday, September 8th, Algeria’s National Independent Election Authority (ANIE) announced that Tebboune had won 94.7% of Saturday’s vote. His challengers, Islamist Abdelali Hassani Cherif and socialist Youcef Aouchiche, received just 3.2% and 2.2% respectively.

Hours later, Tebboune, along with his opponents, began questioning the reported results. The three campaigns released a joint statement accusing the country’s top election official of announcing conflicting figures.

In a country where elections have historically been tightly controlled, the unexpected questions about irregularities have shocked Algerians. Many had anticipated a straightforward victory for Tebboune. With all three candidates raising doubts, it is unclear what will happen next. The uncertainty includes whether these challenges will lead to legal disputes or delay the final certification of the results.

AP News and agencies