The 2009 municipal elections and the new «King’s party»: mutations in Moroccan politics inside and outside the ballot boxes

Authors

  • Irene Fernández Molina
  • Said Kirhlani
  • Raquel Ojeda García

Keywords:

Morocco, politics, society, political parties, elections

Abstract

In spite of its shortcomings as a mechanism of representation working in a semi-authoritarian political context, the local elections held in Morocco in June 2009 represent a good opportunity to observe the dynamics of change taking place in this country, as well as the effective behaviour of both the electoral and the party system. The goal of this article is to explain the before and the after of this polls, marked politically by the impact of the 2007 legislative elections and the rise of a new party allied with the monarchy; and legally and institutionally, by the previous reforms of the Electoral Code and the Carte Communale. Apart from confirming the victory of the king’s party and the prolongation of the statu quo, the results of the ballot gave way to a complex process of party negotiations in order to form the conseils communaux, as well as a chain of indirect elections at different administrative levels.

Issue

Section

ARTICLES