The September 23 legislative elections have brought significant changes to Morocco’s House of Representatives, with several well-known political figures losing their seats while former lawmakers return and others retain their mandates. The PAM came first with 97 seats, ahead of the RNI with 66, Istiqlal with 65 and the PJD with 54.
In Boulemane, one of the most notable surprises was the defeat of Mohand Laenser. A historic figure of the Popular Movement and a former minister, Laenser failed to retain his seat in the constituency where he ran under the MP banner.
With 2,700 votes, he finished well behind Mohamed Chaouki of the RNI, who came first with 13,177 votes. Rachid Hammouni of the PPS retained his seat with 5,672 votes, while Mohamed El Miri secured the remaining seat with 2,907 votes.
In Casablanca, Istiqlal also suffered a setback in Aïn Sebaâ-Hay Mohammadi, where the party had held a seat since 2021. Rachid Afilal, the party’s candidate and son of the late Istiqlal leader Abderrazak Afilal, founder of the UGTM, failed to retain the seat won by the party in the previous election. He received around 3,200 votes and finished sixth, behind the four elected candidates and the Popular Movement.
The four seats in the constituency went to Abdellatif Harchich of the Constitutional Union, who was re-elected, Adil El Bitar of the PAM, who secured a third consecutive term, Rachid Ajkini of the PJD and Hassan Benomar of the RNI. Istiqlal therefore lost all representation in the Casablanca constituency.
Another figure who will not return to the House is Abdelhadi Khairat. The former USFP leader ran this time under the PPS banner in Settat but failed to regain the seat he had held in the past. His list received 2,092 votes and finished outside the first six positions that secured seats.
The six elected candidates in the constituency are Othmane Badel of the PAM, who came first with 15,016 votes, Larbi Chraïbi of the Equity Party with 13,786, Bouchaïb Hamidallah of Istiqlal with 12,933, Massoud Oussar of the MDS with 9,402, Ali Fadli of the PJD with 9,177 and Mohamed Ghiat of the RNI with 8,128.
Former lawmakers return as new faces enter the House
In Rabat-Océan, the results produced two different outcomes. Mehdi Bensaid of the PAM retained his seat with 7,386 votes, while Mustapha El Khalfi, a former minister and prominent PJD figure, returned to the House of Representatives with 5,868 votes.
The two were among the elected candidates in a constituency that also included Abdelkrim Benatiq, a former minister and USFP figure. He failed to secure one of the four seats available.
The elections also marked the return of Rim Chabat to the House of Representatives. Running for the Popular Movement in the Fès-North constituency, she won a seat and returned to the institution. Her election was among the seats claimed by the party following the vote.
In Taroudant, several members of the outgoing government managed to retain their seats. In the Taroudant-North constituency, Justice Minister Abdellatif Ouahbi, running for the PAM, was re-elected with 17,580 votes.
He finished behind Lahcen Saadi of the RNI and Abdelaziz El Bahja of Istiqlal. In Taroudant-South, Istiqlal candidate Abdessamad Kayouh came first with more than 25,392 votes, also retaining his seat in the House of Representatives.
In Sidi Ifni, Mustapha Baïtas, minister delegate in charge of relations with Parliament and government spokesman, also retained his seat. The RNI candidate came first with 16,760 votes, ahead of Jamal Sidati of the PAM, who received 15,591 votes.
In Larache, Istiqlal Secretary-General Nizar Baraka, who also serves as minister of equipment and water, was re-elected. Running for his party in the constituency, he received 14,001 votes and secured another parliamentary term.
In Benslimane, Ryad Mezzour, minister of industry and trade and an Istiqlal candidate, won the constituency’s third seat. He finished behind Yassine Ouakacha of the RNI and Karim Ziyadi of the PAM, joining other members of the outgoing government who secured seats in the House.
Several other outgoing government officials also entered the House for the first time. In Rehamna, Azzeddine El Midaoui, the outgoing minister of higher education, made his first electoral run under the PAM banner. He came first with 14,832 votes, ahead of Hamid El Akroud of the USFP with 4,811 votes and Abdellatif Sandil of the RNI with 4,010.
New faces make their parliamentary debut
The new legislature will also bring in figures whose careers have largely been outside parliamentary politics. In Casablanca’s Hay Hassani constituency, former journalist and former Raja Casablanca spokesperson Samir Chaouki won his first parliamentary mandate under the PJD banner. His list came first in the constituency with 8,370 votes.
In Sefrou, another familiar public figure entered Parliament. Mustapha Lakhsem, a former kickboxing champion and president of the Imouzzer Kandar commune, was elected under the Democratic and Social Movement banner.
The renewal is also visible on regional lists. In the Casablanca-Settat region, artist and actress Fatima Ouchay won her first elected mandate in the vote. As head of the PJD’s regional list, she received 139,708 votes. She joins Malika Mezzour of the PAM, who came first with 157,495 votes, and Nabila Rmili of the RNI, who received 103,132 votes.
Several outgoing lawmakers also retained their seats, sometimes by particularly wide margins. In Chichaoua, Hicham El Mhajri of the PAM won by nearly 25,000 votes over his closest rival. He therefore confirmed his performance in the previous election, when he received the highest number of votes nationwide.
In Meknes, PJD candidate Abdellah Bouanou was also re-elected by a wide margin, finishing more than 14,000 votes ahead of his main rival. In Ben M’Sik, Constitutional Union Secretary-General Mohamed Joudar retained his seat with a margin of more than 8,000 votes. Already elected in the constituency in 2016 and 2021, he secured another term in the House of Representatives.
In Tetouan, however, Ishaq Charia, secretary-general of the Moroccan Liberal Party and a candidate in the constituency, failed to win a seat. Following the vote, he announced that his party had not reached the threshold required to secure parliamentary representation.
