The President is the head of state and chief executive of Algeria.

Powers

The President is the chairman of the Council of Ministers and the High Security Council. The President is elected to a five year term and is constitutionally limited to two terms. He appoints one-third of the upper house of the legislature, the Council of the Nation, as well as the Prime Minister, who serves as head of government.

History

The Tripoli Program , which served as Algeria's constitution when it won its war for independence from France in 1962, established the President as the head of state with a Prime Minister assisting in the operation of government. Internal political maneuvering resulted in a new constitution in 1963 that abolished the Prime Minister position and devolved all executive power upon the office of the President. The constitution written in 1976 maintained the executive power of the Presidency, but the modifications of 1979 stripped the head of government status from the office.

In a response to a major shift in the party makeup of the legislature, Chadli Bendjedid dissolved the parliament and resigned on 11 January 1992. Because there was no elected President, the military declared a state of emergency and took over government of the country, establishing a five-member High Council of State. The council appointed a President, Liamine Zéroual, to take office for a three-year term to facilitate a transfer back to normal elections for the office. Zéroual called the first of these elections in 1995, winning the full five-year term easily. He called another early election in 1999. Abdelaziz Bouteflika won this election after all other candidates dropped out. He won re-election on 8 April 2004; his term ends in 2009.

For a list of the Presidents of Algeria see: Heads of State of Algeria

See also

• Algeria