Moroccans voted on Friday in the first legislative election since the king introduced constitutional reforms in response to the Arab Spring uprisings, with an Islamist party expected to make strong gains.
The main contenders in the election, the second in north Africa since a wave of agitation roiled the region, are the moderately Islamist Justice and Development party (PJD) and a handful of liberal, secular parties.
Early yesterday, before any results had been announced, the PJD was already saying that according to the figures they had, they were well ahead — “a tidal wave,” one party leader called it — of their rivals.
The election comes less than five months after a July referendum overwhelmingly approved a new constitution proposed by King Mohammed VI as autocratic regimes toppled in nearby Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.
Under the amended constitution, some of the powers of the king, who hails from a monarchy that has ruled Morocco for 350 years, were transferred to parliament. The prime minister must now be appointed from the party that wins the most seats in the assembly.
However, the 47-year-old monarch remains the head of state and the military and still appoints ambassadors and diplomats.
Analysts said a high voter turnout would give credibility to the reforms, but initial indications were of a mixed public response to the poll.
Throughout the day commercials broadcast on TV urged Moroccans to “carry out their national duty” by voting, while newscasts repeatedly explained how people could find out where their polling station was located.
Morocco’s pro-reform Feb. 20 protest movement had called on voters to boycott the elections. It said the constitutional reforms were insufficient.
Provisional interior ministry figures put the turnout at 45 percent, up from 37 percent from the last parliamentary election in 2007, but lower than the 51.6 percent turnout recorded in 2002.
“The election took place in a normal context, under a climate of mobilization and a sense of responsibility,” Moroccan Interior Minister Taib Cherkaoui told reporters.
Final election results will only be announced this afternoon, the minister added. The government had previously said the final results would be given yesterday.
Opinion polls are not allowed in Morocco, but some observers said the PJD could emerge with the most votes after similar success by a moderate Islamist party in Tunisia’s first democratic election last month.
Early yesterday, PJD spokesman Hassan Lamrani said: “Our party is substantially ahead of its rivals across the country.”
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