[2] The RND was founded on 21 February 1997 in the midst of the Algerian Civil War for supporters of Liamine Zéroual, former head of ground forces of the Algerian military who had been elected president less than two years earlier (16 November 1995).

In the Algerian Parliamentary elections held on 5 June 1997 the RND received more votes than any other party 156 out of 380 seats.

In the next parliamentary elections five years later it came in third polling only 9.5% of the vote, winning 47 of 380 seats in the Algerian Parliament.

The Georgetown University Berkley Center describes the RND as having "replaced" the FLN as the Algerian "state party" temporarily for the 1995 and 1997 elections "after the FLN was defeated by the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) in the 1991-1992 national legislative elections".

That election was canceled by a military coup and the civil war that followed killed as many 200,000 Algerians,[4] but once the Islamist insurgents were pacified to a large degree, the "FLN regained its place as the majority and ruling party".