Morocco: PJD leaders resign after election defeat

Moroccan foreign minister Saad-Eddine El Othmani addresses a press conference with his German counterpart (unseen) at the foreign ministry in Berlin on 23 November 2012. [ODD ANDERSEN/AFP via Getty Images]

The General Secretariat of the Moroccan Justice and Development Party (PJD) yesterday announced that all its members had resigned from their posts, including the party’s Secretary-General and outgoing Prime Minister, Saad Eddine El Othmani, following their defeat in the elections this week.

On Wednesday, results from the parliamentary elections showed that the party came in eighth place with only 13 seats after winning the last two elections and leading the government for the past decade.

“It has been decided to convene an extraordinary session of the party’s National Council on Saturday, September 18, in order to comprehensively assess electoral benefits and take appropriate decisions,” the party’s general secretariat said in a statement.

The PJD described the election results as “illogical” and said they “do not reflect the reality of the political map, nor the party’s position in the political scene and its outcome in managing local and governmental affairs.”

Moroccan Interior Minister Abdelouafi Laftit announced yesterday that the National Rally of Independents had won the legislative elections with 102 seats followed by the Authenticity and Modernity Party with 87 seats.

READ: 50% of Moroccans voted in parliamentary elections

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