At stake in this election:

• 325 seats in the Chamber of Representatives (Majlis al-Nuwab)

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: King MOHAMED VI
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Abbas EL FASSI
• Assembly: Morocco has a bicameral Parliament (Barlaman) consisting of the Chamber of Counselors (Majlis al-Mustacharin) with 270 seats and the Chamber of Representatives (Majlis al-Nuwab) with 325 seats.

Description of electoral system:

• The King is the hereditary head of state.
• The Prime Minister is appointed by the monarch. The monarch is required to choose the prime minister from the largest party in parliament.
• In the Chamber of Counselors (Majlis al-Mustacharin) 270 members are elected by indirect vote to serve 9-year terms*. In the Chamber of Representatives (Majlis al-Nuwab), 295 members are elected through a closed-list proportional representation system to serve 5-year terms and 30 members are reserved for women to serve 5-year terms.**

* Members are elected indirectly by local councils, professional organizations, and labor syndicates. One-third of the members are renewed every three years.

** 295 members are elected in 95 multi-seat constituencies. The thirty reserved seats are from a national list of women.

Main parties in the electoral race:

• Party: Socialist Union of Popular Forces / Arabic: الاتحاد الاشتراكي للقوات الشعبية, French: Union Socialiste des Forces Populaires (USFP)
  • Leader: Mohammed EL-YAZGHI
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 39
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 38
• Party: Istiqlal Party / Arabic: حزب الإستقلال hizb al-istiqlāl, French: Parti de l'Istiqlal (PI)
  • Leader: Abbas EL FASSI
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 60
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 52
• Party: National Rally of Independents / Arabic: التجمع الوطني للأحرار‎ French: Rassemblement National des Indépendents (RNI)
  • Leader: Salaheddine MEZOUAR
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 52
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 39
• Party: Party of Justice and Development / Arabic: حزب العدالة والتنمية‎ French: Parti de la Justice et du Développement (PJD)
  • Leader: Abdelillah BENKIRANE
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 107
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 46
• Party: Popular Movement / لحركة الشعبية‎ Mouvement populaire (MP)
  • Leader: Mohamed LAENSER
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 32
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 41
• Party: Constitutional Union / (Arabic: الاتحاد الدستوري‎, French: Union constitutionelle (UC)
  • Leader: Mohamed ABIED
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 23
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 27
• Party: Front of Democratic Forces / Front des Forces Démocratiques (FFD)
  • Leader: Thami EL KHYARI
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 1
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 9
• Party: Party of Progress and Socialism / حزب التقدم والاشتراكية /Parti du Progrès et du Socialisme (PPS)
  • Leader: Mohammed Nabil Ben ABDALLAH
  • Seats won in this Chamber of Representatives election: 18
  • Seats won in last Chamber of Representatives election: 17

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 32,531,964 (2011)
• Registered Voters: 13,451,404 (July 2011)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 16,512,813 (2011)

·         Is Morocco a signatory to CEDAW: No

·         Has Morocco ratified CEDAW: Yes, accession (21 June 1993)

·         Gender Quota: Yes

·         Female candidates in this election: N/A

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 34 (following the 2007 elections)

·         Human Development Index Position: 126 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Low (2014)

Disability Data:

·         Is Morocco a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)

·         Has Morocco ratified CRPD: Yes (8 April 2009)

·         Population with a disability: 4,879,794 (est.)