Jordan’s moderate Islamist opposition could emerge from Tuesday’s parliamentary election with renewed influence after surviving government attempts to ban it as part of a wider crackdown on political Islam, analysts said. The group could win up to a fifth of seats in the parliament after ditching its “Islam is the Solution” slogan and joining with Christians and prominent national figures to create a broad-based civic grouping, The National Coalition for Reform, they added. Officials said turnout was 36 percent of 4.1 million eligible voters at the end of polling, lower than the election in January 2013.
This appeared to confirm reports by independent observers who anticipated apathy from many voters with minimal confidence in a parliament dominated by pro-government tribal deputies.
Ballot counting went relatively smoothly with results expected on Wednesday. No major incidents were reported in tribal areas where clan fights can occur when results are released.
Full Article: Jordan’s rebranded Islamists seen staging election comeback | Reuters.