ALGIERS — Algerians began voting on Saturday in a snap presidential election in which incumbent Abdelmadjid Tebboune is widely expected to win a second term.

Polling stations opened at 8 a.m. (0700 GMT) and are set to close at 7 p.m. The North African country has over 24 million registered voters, while more than 800,000 Algerians abroad began casting their ballots on September 2.

The Independent National Election Authority reported that voter turnout had reached 4.56% just two hours after the polls opened.

Election authority chairman Mohamed Charfi told state television that by 10 a.m., 1.07 million voters had already cast their ballots. Meanwhile, overseas voter turnout reached 14.5% by the same time, with 125,458 ballots cast from abroad.

For comparison, during the December 2019 presidential election, which occurred amid mass protests leading to the ousting of former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, voter turnout was recorded at 7.92% by 11 a.m.

Apart from Tebboune, 78, the other contenders include Abdelaali Hassani Cherif from the Movement of Society for Peace and Youcef Aouchiche, a socialist candidate.

In June, President Tebboune announced the snap election, initially scheduled for December, positioning himself as a representative of all Algerians, particularly the youth, middle class, and disadvantaged.

Cherif, 58, leads Algeria's largest Islamic party, while Aouchiche, 42, serves as the first secretary of the Socialist Forces Front, Algeria's oldest opposition party founded in 1963, representing the leftist opposition. — Agencies