The former PAM President and former Jordanian Prime Minister, Sen. Dr. Fayyez Al Tarawneh welcomed the delegation and expressed his appreciation for the observation mission at the Jordanian elections, which underlines the commitment and the active role PAM is playing in the region.
Following is the Mission’s full report and views on the electoral process in Jordan.
PORTUGAL
Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean
REPORT ON PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IN JORDAN
The President of the PA of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) had previously requested PAM’s Secretary General to join this endeavor, in order to form a joint monitoring mission. Both PAM and the Jordanian Authorities had agreed to this request.
22 January
Afterwards the PAM delegation also met Mrs. Bushra Abu Shahout, Head of the International Cooperation and Observation section, at the Headquarters of the Independent Election Commission (IEC), during which they were thoroughly briefed on the technicalities of the monitoring mission and a list of all the polling stations was handed to the delegation in order to organize their monitoring activity.
Election Day, the 23 January
Total of registered voters:
Total of candidates (male)
Total of candidates (woman)
Total of seats (low chamber)
Total of seats (Muslim)
Total of seats (Christians)
Total of seats (Circassian / Chechen)
The Election Process
The polling stations opened at 7:00 am and the voters brought their national and voter identification cards.
At the private voting area, each voter wrote the name of one candidate on the ballot paper for the local constituency and highlighted the symbol and number of one list on the national district ballot paper.
The Voting officially closed at 7:00pm, although it was extended to 8:00pm.
Jordanians voted for a parliament with wider authority as the monarch King Abdullah II ceded some of its constitutional powers. This new legislature will be able to choose the prime minister.
Centrist parties on Wednesday launched a campaign to encourage citizens to register for the parliamentary elections and urged opposition groups to take part in the polls. The Muslim Brotherhood was pressed to review its decision to boycott the polls.
On Election Day, PAM delegation visited several polling stations in Amman and in the outskirts: 6th, 29th, 30th, 37th polling stations at the 2nd and 3rd districts.
Both the people and the staff were very nice and kind, making our assignment a very pleasant one. For the Jordanians, the Election Day and the presence at the polling stations were felt like they were participating in some kind of patriotic act.
Fernando Serrasqueiro
Pedro Roque