Less than a dozen presidential candidates declared candidacies on Thursday for Algeria's next election, including incumbent President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, 78, who leads the effort.

Tebboune, who was elected in 2019, declared last week that he will run for a second term.

"I filed my candidacy as stipulated by law," he stated on Thursday. "I thank all those who support me, parties, organizations and citizens."

Tebboune declared in March that the election would take place on September 7, three months ahead of schedule but did not explain the decision. Algeria had legislative elections in 2021, where voter turnout was 23.03%.

Algeria, with a population of 45 million, is the continent's principal natural gas supply, with Tunisia, Spain, and Italy strongly relying on it. 

Candidate for Algeria's oldest opposition group, the Socialist Forces Front, Youcef Aouchice, described submitting his candidacy as difficult. 

The party has a large electoral base in the Berber-majority Kabylie area, and Aouchice stated, "Despite the many obstacles and the climate that was not conducive to political work, we were able to overcome that stage."

To qualify as candidates, contenders must submit at least 50,000 signatures from registered voters or 600 members from at least 29 of Algeria's provincial assemblies.

The Algerian Workers' Party's head, Louisa Hanoune, stepped out of the contest last week, leaving just two female candidates: businesswoman Saida Neghza and lawyer Zoubida Assoul.

Neghza expressed her desire that "the electoral process takes place in a climate of transparency and integrity, without any favoritism" in a news conference before formally filing her candidacy.

Abdelaali Hassani, the leader of Algeria's major Islamist party, the Movement of Society for Peace (MSP), was the first to open candidate submissions Thursday morning.

The final list of candidates for the election will be released on July 27.

Fewer than a dozen candidates are anticipated to submit their candidacies before the midnight deadline with Tebboune, who has been sponsored by numerous political groups, being the front-runner.