Islamists to take 80 seats in Morocco

MOROCCO was yesterday awaiting the final results from polls in which moderate Islamists emerged as the dominant political force, the latest religious party to achieve huge gains on the back of the Arab Spring.

With 288 out of the 395 seats up for grabs in the lower house of parliament awarded, the Justice and Development Party (PJD) captured 80 seats.

That is nearly double the 45 seats won in Friday’s polls by prime minister Abbas el Fassi’s Independence Party, which finished second and has headed a five-party coalition since 2007.

If the preliminary results are confirmed, the PJD’s victory will come a month after Islamists won Tunisia’s post-revolution election and days before their predicted surge in Egyptian polls.

Under a constitution approved in a July referendum, King Mohammed VI will have to name a prime minister from the PJD.

The pro-reform February 20 movement, responsible for protests held just before the king announced plans to change the constitution to curb his near-absolute powers, called for a boycott of the election, arguing the reforms are insufficient.