Louisa Hanoune, leader of Algeria’s Trotskyist Workers’ Party, has announced her candidacy for the September 7th presidential election.
The announcement came after a meeting held by her party on Friday and Saturday, where she was granted the candidacy for the presidential elections for which she ran in 2004, 2009 and 2014, according to Algerian national television.
Hanoune described her participation in the elections as a “victory for democracy”, noting that her election campaign would be “offensive” rather than “defensive”.
Algerian authorities have scheduled early presidential elections for September 7, three months ahead of their original date.
Incumbent President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who was elected in December 2019, has not announced whether he will seek a new term.
Louisa Hanoune was imprisoned in May 2019 on charges of “conspiring” against the state and the army following the start of the popular movement.
In 2021, the court acquitted Louisa Hanoune, Said Bouteflika, former intelligence directors Lieutenant General Mohamed Mediène and General Othman Tartag.
Hanoune is the first woman in the Arab world to run for president.
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