Algeria Sets November 5 Local Campaign Start, Bars Foreign Languages

Algeria's National Independent Election Authority (ANIE) has set Thursday, 5 November 2026, as the start of campaigning for local elections scheduled for 28 November, while reminding candidates that foreign languages, certain public and private institutional resources and commercial advertising are barred from campaign use. The campaign ends on 24 November. These are the authority's stated rules, not a finding that any candidate has violated them.

The election will choose members of municipal people's assemblies and provincial, or wilaya, assemblies. In a statement reported on 2 November by Algerian public television, ANIE cited Article 73 of the amended organic electoral law in saying campaign activity outside the designated period is prohibited, regardless of medium.

The statement also says campaigners must avoid hate speech and discrimination. It prohibits the use of foreign languages in campaigning, subject to the wording of the applicable electoral rules. The announcement does not, by itself, establish how the restriction will be interpreted or enforced in individual cases.

ANIE said campaign propaganda must not use the assets or facilities of public institutions, or those of private or public legal entities, except where legislation provides otherwise. Places of worship, government offices, schools and training institutions are also off limits for electioneering. Candidates are instructed to avoid violent, insulting or unlawful conduct.

For media coverage, ANIE called for equitable allocation of airtime among candidates by licensed audiovisual outlets, with oversight coordinated with the audiovisual regulator. Commercial campaign advertising is prohibited, while publication of voting-intention polls is barred in the 72 hours before polling day. Election posters must be confined to designated, equally allocated public spaces.

The local newspaper La Sentinelle separately reported the authority's rules on 3 November and noted that representatives of political parties and independent lists had signed an electoral ethics charter following the allocation of public-broadcast airtime slots.

The immediate accountability questions are whether airtime is distributed equally in practice, how the language and advertising restrictions are enforced, how rejected candidate lists and appeals are resolved, and whether ANIE publishes transparent complaints and sanction decisions. No allegation of election manipulation follows from the issuance of these campaign rules alone.