Algeria\\\'s Bouteflika poised to win re-election

Algerians voted on Thursday in an election President Abdelaziz Bouteflika is expected to win after 15 years in power, despite speaking only rarely in public since suffering a stroke in 2013. With the dominant National Liberation Front (FLN) party, allied movements and unions behind him, many Algerians believe Bouteflika, 77, is almost assured of victory and another five years governing the North African OPEC state. Algeria is seen as a partner in Washington's campaign against Islamist militancy in the Maghreb and a stable supplier of around a fifth of Europe's gas imports. But concerns about Bouteflika's health and how Algeria manages any transition have raised questions about stability in a region where neighboring Libya, Tunisia and Egypt are still in turmoil after the Arab Spring revolts of 2011. Bouteflika himself voted sitting in a wheelchair in Algiers' El Biar district. He did not give any statement and briefly shook hands with supporters before leaving the polling station, Reuters.