The Jordanian Elections: No More than Deepening the Crisis

The latest Jordanian parliamentary elections were held against the backdrop of a political and social crisis. The country’s autocratic ruling system will not survive if a genuine parliamentary pluralist system is established, a system that ensures egalitarianism and entrenches democratic traditions in politics. This is why the regime tries its best to maintain its monopoly on power by impeding the development of Jordan’s political and social infrastructures, and thus prevent the emergence of a class capable of assuming power and representing the interests of all Jordanians. This led, among other, to several vertical cleavages that infiltrated Jordanian society quite easily due to the absence of a democratic culture. However, though the outcome of these elections was a victory for the regime, since they helped prolong the status quo, they also doomed the country to fail in standing-up to the looming challenges, chief among which are those associated with the fierce crisis in Syria that affects the entire region.

The views represented in this paper are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Arab Reform Initiative, its staff, or its board.