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Despite Boycott Voting Goes Ahead in Jordan

09 November 2010 21:01 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. Voters went to the polls Tuesday in Jordan despite a boycott by the countryâ€™s main opposition group, in a parliamentary election that is likely to bolster allies of the countryâ€™s monarchy and deepen popular alienation from the political process, APA reports quoting â€œThe New York Timesâ€.
The election follows a campaign dominated by widespread anger at the stalled Mideast peace talks and rising poverty in Jordan. The pro-American kingdom has struggled for years to balance a measure of democracy with the need to check a powerful Islamist movement and a large, restive Palestinian population.
The Islamic Action Front, Jordanâ€™s main opposition group, boycotted in protest of the governmentâ€™s failure to reform its gerrymandered voting districts, in which cities â€” where most Islamist voters live â€” have less representation in parliament than rural areas inhabited by tribes that are loyal to Jordanâ€™s King, Abdullah II.
Reflecting that imbalance, voting was light in Amman, Jordanâ€™s capital, many observers said. But by midday it appeared to have picked up somewhat, and the Interior Ministry reported that turnout across Jordan was 32 percent.
In all, 763 candidates ran for 120 seats in Jordanâ€™s elected lower house, known as the Chamber of Deputies, where 12 spots are allocated for Christians and other minorities and 12 others are set aside for women.
Jordanâ€™s last election, in 2007, took place in the shadow of the takeover of Gaza by Hamas, which left the government deeply worried about Islamist influence. The election was marred by widespread accusations of fraud and manipulation by the Jordanian authorities. This time the government was keen to ease those resentments, and allowed international monitors to observe the election for the first time.
â€œThereâ€™s no doubt that procedures have improved since 2007,â€ said Les Campbell, the regional director of the National Democratic Institute, which brought a 61-member observation team. Vote-checking methods have improved, it is easier to file a challenge and everything is computerized, Mr. Campbell said. But there have been accusations of vote-buying, as yet unconfirmed, and â€œit remains to be seen whether the improved procedures will result in a better election,â€ Mr. Campbell added.
King Abdullah dissolved the Chamber of Deputies late last year, and many thought he would reform the imbalances in Jordanâ€™s voting districts, said Renda Habib, a political analyst in Amman. Instead, he left it intact, leading the Islamic Action Front, which is the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, to shun the election.
â€œThe number of Islamists has grown, but their representation in Parliament has shrunk,â€ said Ms. Habib.
Seven members of the Islamic Action Front ignored the boycott and ran for office as independents. They have been suspended by the Front, and if they win â€” as seems likely â€” it could bolster the electionâ€™s public legitimacy.
Economic issues figured largely in the election, reflecting Jordanâ€™s high rate of joblessness, high food prices and a record budget deficit of $2.1 billion. Jordanâ€™s economy is heavily dependent on foreign investment, foreign aid and remittances. It suffered more than most other Arab countries in the global economic crisis that began in 2008.