Snap parliamentary elections were held in Algeria on 12 June 2021 to elect all 407 members of the People's National Assembly. Initially expected for 2022, the elections were held early in the context of a constitutional amendment propagated by a referendum in November 2020. Background 2017 legislative election The legislative election of May 2017 was characterized by a low turnout of 35%, even worse than the 43% of the legislative election of 2012. Polls showed a renewal of the ruling coalition, a alliance between the National Liberation Front (FLN) and the National Rally for Democracy (RND), which retains the absolute majority of seats in the National People's Assembly, despite a sharp decline in the FLN. Society in Algeria has been tense for several years due to the fall in the price of a barrel of oil with the government never having succeeded in ending the country's dependence on hydrocarbons, which represent 60% of the state budget. A large part of the population is encountering economic difficulties due to the impact of this fall in the national budget on the prices of basic necessities which are heavily subsidized by the state. 2019–20 Algerian protests President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, controversially elected in December 2019 following the massive protests known as "Hirak", initiated a constitutional reform at the start of his term which led to the holding of a referendum on November 1, 2020. President Tebboune declared that an early dissolution of the two chambers of parliament would take place in late 2020 if the new constitution is approved by the population. While the referendum was approved, the call for new election was delayed by the transfer of Tebboune to Germany for over two months to get treatment for COVID-19. Electoral system Algeria has a bicameral parliament of which the People's National Assembly is the lower house. This is made up of 407 seats filled by proportional representation in 59 constituencies corresponding to the 58 Provinces (prefectures) of the country plus one constituency representing the diaspora. Each constituency is allocated a number of seats according to its population: one seat per segment of 120,000 inhabitants, plus one seat for any remaining segment of 60,000 inhabitants, with a minimum of three seats per constituency. The lists are open, with preferential voting, without mixing, and an electoral threshold of 5% of the votes cast, after counting of the votes, the distribution of seats is done according