Morocco’s Authenticity and Modernity Party won the most seats in the country’s legislative elections, taking 97 out of 395 seats in the House of Representatives. Final results announced by the Ministry of Interior on Friday showed that the monarchy-aligned party, commonly known by its French acronym PAM, finished ahead of other political groups in the lower house of parliament according to Aljazeera.
Morocco Election Results and Parliament Composition
Despite winning the largest share of seats, PAM fell well short of the 198 seats required for an outright majority. Under the Moroccan Constitution, King Mohammed VI must appoint a prime minister from the winning party. Because of the missing majority, PAM will need to negotiate and build a governing coalition with other political factions.
Coalition Dynamics and Potential Leadership
The National Rally of Independents, which served as PAM’s senior coalition partner previously, lost significant ground by dropping from 102 seats down to 66. Meanwhile, the moderate Islamist Justice and Development Party, which led the government for a decade before its seats collapsed in 2021, staged a comeback by quadrupling its total to 54 seats. However, the PJD announced it will remain in opposition due to a longstanding rivalry with PAM, making a coalition between them unlikely.
Political analysts expect PAM to instead turn toward the monarchist Istiqlal party, which finished in third place, alongside other smaller parties to secure a governing majority.
Potential candidates for prime minister include prominent party figures:
- Fouzi Lakjaa: The 56-year-old budget minister and president of Morocco’s football federation, who recently joined PAM and is a member of its political bureau.
- Fatima Ezzahra Mansouri: The 50-year-old mayor of Marrakech and minister of urban planning, who serves as coordinator of the party’s collective leadership. If selected, she would become Morocco’s first female prime minister.
PAM itself was founded in 2008 by Fouad Ali El Himma, a royal adviser and childhood friend of King Mohammed VI, and was established to serve as a political counterweight to the PJD.
Voter Turnout and Key Economic Pressures
The election took place with low voter participation, as only 6 million of the 15.8 million registered voters cast ballots on Wednesday. The overall turnout of 38 percent marked the second-lowest participation rate since King Mohammed VI ascended to the throne, matching the low figures seen in 2007 and dropping sharply from the approximately 51 percent turnout recorded in 2021.
Observers attributed the low engagement to widespread voter disengagement following Gen Z-led protests last year over jobs, education, and healthcare, alongside deadly mass migration attempts by migrants to reach Ceuta in July. The campaign itself was shaped by high unemployment despite a thriving economy, along with public demands for better hospitals, schools, housing, and wages.
The 2030 World Cup Mandate
The incoming administration will take charge as Morocco prepares to co-host the 2030 World Cup alongside Spain and Portugal. This upcoming responsibility will require the new political leadership to oversee billions of dollars in national investments, leading some observers to refer to the incoming administration as the World Cup government.
The incoming leadership takes office despite recent political headwinds, including a major drug- and gold-trafficking scandal that allegedly involved senior PAM members who were subsequently sentenced to prison.
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