Jordan's Islamists bounce back in election clouded by Gaza war

By Suleiman Al-Khalidi

AMMAN (Reuters) -Jordan's moderate Islamist opposition made significant gains in Tuesday's parliamentary election, initial official results showed on Wednesday, boosted by anger over Israel's war in Gaza.

The Islamist Action Front (IAF) also benefited from a new electoral law that encourages a bigger role for political parties in the 138-seat parliament, though tribal and pro-government factions will continue to dominate the assembly.

The IAF, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, won up to a fifth of the seats under the revamped electoral law, which for the first time allocated 41 seats for parties, according to preliminary figures seen by Reuters and confirmed by independent and official sources.

"The Jordanian people have given us their trust by voting for us. This new phase will increase the burden of responsibility for the party towards the nation and our citizens," Wael al Saqqa, head of the IAF, told Reuters.

The Islamist win has allowed them to capture a total of 31 seats for the first time since parliamentary life was revived in 1989 after decades of martial law, allowing them to emerge as the largest political grouping in parliament.

"The elections reflect the desire for change and those who voted were not necessarily all Islamists but wanting change and had become fed up with the old ways," Murad Adailah, the head of the Muslim Brotherhood, said.

The Islamists, the only effective grassroots opposition, praised the authorities for not meddling in polls.

Adailah told Reuters their win was a "popular referendum" that backs their platform of support for the militant Palestinian group Hamas, their ideological allies, and their demand to scrap the country's peace treaty with Israel.

In a country where anti-Israel sentiment runs high, they have led some of the largest protests in the region in support of Hamas in what their opponents say allowed them to increase their popularity.

The election represents a modest step in a democratisation process launched by King Abdullah as he seeks to insulate Jordan from the conflicts at its borders and speed up the slow pace of political reforms.

Under Jordan's constitution, most powers still rest with the king who appoints governments and can dissolve parliament. The assembly can force a cabinet to resign by a vote of no confidence.

The monarch hopes nascent political parties under the new law will help pave the way for governments that emerge from parliamentary majorities.

The voting system still favours sparsely-populated tribal and provincial regions over the densely-populated cities mostly inhabited by Jordanians of Palestinian descent, which are Islamist strongholds and highly politicised.

Turnout among Jordan's 5.1 million eligible voters in Tuesday's poll was low at 32.25%, initial official figures showed, up slightly from 29% at the last election in 2020.

The Muslim Brotherhood has been allowed to operate in Jordan since 1946. But it fell under suspicion after the Arab Spring, which saw Islamists pitted against established powers in many Arab countries.

(Reporting by Suleiman Al-Khalidi, Editing by Gareth Jones and Angus MacSwan)