How the Moroccan Government Works

Hey Pols friends, this one’s for you!

This is a pretty simple summary of how the government works. Executively, the country is ruled by King Mohammed VI. He has been in power since 1999 when his father passed away. The King holds both religious power, as a descendent of the Prophet, and political power, commander of the Armed Forces and able to determine foreign policy. Since his coronation, he has been especially focused on fighting corruption and improving human rights. In 2011 when the Arab Spring protests started, the King made a number of concessions including:
1: Being obliged to appoint the Prime Minister from the party with the most seats.
2: Guaranteeing women social, civil, and political equality to men
3: Making the Berber language a national language, and protecting the Berber culture , and
4: Giving the Prime Minister the power to dissolve parliament, and the ability to determine the general policies of the state.
However, by and large, the King is very well liked in the country, and has done a lot to address issues facing the country.

Legislatively, Morocco is a bicameral democracy. The Assembly of Representatives, like the House of Commons in Canada, is the main chamber with 325 seats. Members are elected for five year terms in a mixed electoral system. 295 of the seats are elected in multi-seat constituencies and 30 are elected by a national list of only women. The House of Councillors, similar to the Senate in Canada, is comprised of 270 seats elected by sociological representation (Thanks Jon). 162 seats are elected by local councils, 91 by professional councils, and 27 by wage earners. Members sit for a six year term.

According to the Moroccan Constitution, the judiciary is to be independent of any interference by the executive or legislative branches, however there are still serious questions about its independence.

If you’re still reading this, you deserve a cute picture to make your day a little bit better. Here is a cute baby camel :)