The party was formed by Hocine Aït Ahmed on 29 September 1963[1][2] in the city of Tizi Ouzou to oppose Ben Bella's government.

The Ben Bella government, aided by the National Liberation Army, swiftly took control of the dissident towns during a mostly bloodless confrontation.

The 1963 conflict resulted in 10 months of armed confrontation in the region, leaving more than four hundred dead, and most of the FLN leaders from Kabylia and the eastern provinces either executed or forced into exile.

[7] Hocine Aït Ahmed wrote to the Council of the Nation saying that "participation in these elections is a tactical necessity for the FFS, which falls in line with (its) construction strategy of peaceful democratic alternative to this despotic regime, corrupt and destructive.

"[5] With an electoral result of mere 2.47%, the party reached 27 seats making it the second-largest opposition power after the Islamist Green Algeria Alliance.