Reuters - Moroccans voted on Friday in their second parliamentary election
since the king devolved some powers in a constitutional reform five years ago
to ease Arab
Spring protests calling for change.
After
leading the ruling coalition since 2011, moderate Islamist Justice and
Development Party (PJD) is expected to dominate the ballot over main rivals the
Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM) which critics say is close to the
palace.
No party
openly challenges the king, who retains most executive authority. Voters will
select lawmakers for the 395-seat House of Representatives. The prime minister
will be selected by the king from the party that wins most seats.
Under the
electoral system, no one party can win an outright majority, forcing winners
into a drawn-out process of negotiations to form a coalition government.
PJD-led
government pushed fiscal reforms and is popular for its anti-corruption stance.
But campaigning was marked by accusations from critics that the royal
establishment, uneasy with sharing power with Islamists, was unfairly backing
PAM.
Reuters
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