Algerian Radio
The Acting President of the Independent National Authority of Elections (ANIE), Karim Khelfane, praised on Monday the transparency and integrity that marked the July 2 legislative elections, considering that the recorded voter turnout should encourage political parties and civil society to redouble their efforts to win the trust of voters.
Hosting a press conference at the Abdelatif-Rahal International Conference Centre (CIC) in Algiers, dedicated to the announcement of the provisional results of the elections for the members of the National People's Assembly (APN), Mr. Khelfane specified that the voter turnout, which stood at 21.24% inside the country and 10.75% for members of the national community established abroad, is a "real rate," praising "the transparency and integrity of the electoral operation."
In this context, he expressed the hope that these results would serve as a "lesson for political parties and civil society actors to make greater efforts through advance preparation for the electoral operation in order to win the trust of the electorate and convince them of the necessity to participate in the ballot."
Mr. Khelfane also explained that the law "does not oblige" the citizen to vote. According to him, "the voter must be convinced by the political discourse and by the grassroots work that paves the way for achieving the results expected by all."
Discussing the management of the electoral operation by ANIE, Mr. Khelfane indicated that "it maintained an equidistant position from all participants," recalling that the July 2 legislative elections constitute the ninth national event whose organization has been supervised by the Authority. This experience has allowed it, he added, to "accumulate significant capital to correct shortcomings and ensure that communication channels remain open, both at the central and local levels, as well as with the national community established abroad."
Mr. Khelfane also highlighted that these legislative elections were based on "the criteria of transparency, integrity, neutrality, and equity, in application of the laws of the Republic," while ensuring that doors were kept open to observers representing political parties within the voting centers and polling stations, in order to "guarantee the inviolability and credibility of the results."
