The study examines the relationship between the army and politics in Mauritania and Algeria, and its impact on democratic transition in both countries. The study seeks to answer three questions: Why do some military regimes transform into democratic systems while others maintain their regime? To what extent can the military regimes in Mauritania and Algeria free themselves from their long-standing military traditions to follow the pattern of democratization in the world? What are the obstacles? The study presents answers to the questions raised through two points; the first discusses the army and politics in Mauritania and Algeria. The second attempts to examine the faltering attempts at democratization and monitors the current political shifts, or that which can be expressed in the army in the various stages of democratic transition.