Morocco heads to polls as cost of living, political trust dominate election

Moroccans are heading to the polls on Wednesday to elect a new House of Representatives, with employment, the rising cost of living, inequality and public services among the major concerns shaping the election.

The September 23 vote is Morocco’s 12th legislative election since independence and will determine the composition of the 395-member lower house of Parliament. Official figures show that 15,801,162 voters are registered for the election, with 28 political parties and other electoral groupings competing for seats.

Polling stations are scheduled to open at 8 a.m. and close at 7 p.m., with preliminary results expected after voting ends.

The election comes at a politically significant moment for Morocco, where economic growth and major infrastructure investments have been accompanied by persistent concerns over unemployment, particularly among young people, household purchasing power and unequal access to opportunities.

Employment has emerged as one of the most important issues of the campaign.

Morocco has invested heavily in infrastructure, manufacturing, ports, renewable energy and other sectors in recent years, while preparing for the 2030 FIFA World Cup, which the country will co-host with Spain and Portugal.

However, the economic gains have not eliminated concerns about employment and living standards.

Reuters reported that youth unemployment stood at about 27 per cent, while the International Monetary Fund has put unemployment among Moroccans aged 15 to 24 considerably higher, at 37.3 per cent in 2025. The IMF has also highlighted challenges involving skills mismatches and limited private-sector job creation.

For many voters, particularly younger Moroccans, the central question is whether economic growth is translating into jobs, higher incomes and improved access to essential services.

Housing, education, healthcare and infrastructure have consequently featured prominently in the campaign.

The election is also taking place amid concerns about voter disengagement and distrust of political institutions.

An Afrobarometer survey cited by Reuters found that only about one-third of Moroccans aged 18 to 35 expressed trust in Parliament, the prime minister or political parties.

Official electoral data also highlights the relatively small share of young people on the voter register. Those aged between 18 and 24 account for only 4 per cent of registered voters, while people aged 60 and above account for 29 per cent.

That demographic imbalance has made youth participation a major issue in the election.

Morocco experienced youth-led protests in 2025 over employment, healthcare, education and living conditions. The protests brought economic grievances into the streets and intensified discussions about whether the political system is adequately responding to the expectations of younger citizens.

A separate mass attempt by migrants to cross into Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta in July also highlighted frustrations surrounding economic opportunity and migration, although migration itself has not been a central issue in the election campaign.

The election will determine the composition of the House of Representatives and play an important role in the formation of the next government.

Under Morocco’s constitutional system, the king appoints the head of government from the political party that wins the largest number of seats in the House of Representatives. The appointed head of government then forms the cabinet.

The monarchy, however, retains a central role in strategic areas of national policy, meaning that an electoral victory does not translate into control over every major area of governance.

This makes the election both a contest between political parties and a test of how effectively those parties can influence economic and social policy within Morocco’s broader constitutional system.

The parties contesting the election have responded to voters’ economic concerns with promises centred on employment, wages, social protection and public services.

The National Rally of Independents (RNI), which currently leads the governing coalition, has placed job creation among its priorities. The party has promised to create about one million jobs over the next parliamentary term.

The Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM), another major governing coalition party, has also made employment and purchasing power central elements of its campaign.

Istiqlal, the third major party in the governing coalition, has focused on issues including purchasing power, healthcare, housing, employment, water management and food security.

The opposition Justice and Development Party (PJD), which governed Morocco for roughly a decade before suffering a major defeat in the 2021 election, is seeking to rebuild its support under former prime minister Abdelilah Benkirane.

The competition therefore involves both a defence of the governing coalition’s record and an attempt by opposition parties to convince voters that a different approach can address the country’s economic and social challenges.

The next government will also inherit responsibility for overseeing major infrastructure projects linked to Morocco’s preparations for the 2030 FIFA World Cup.

The country is undertaking major investments in transport, stadiums, tourism and other infrastructure as it prepares to host the tournament alongside Spain and Portugal.

Supporters of the government’s development strategy point to these investments, as well as Morocco’s expanding manufacturing, port and renewable-energy sectors, as evidence of economic progress.

Critics and some voters, however, have questioned whether such investments are sufficiently translating into employment and improvements in everyday living conditions, particularly outside the country’s major urban centres.

That tension between headline economic growth and individual economic experience is one of the defining issues of the election.

The election will ultimately determine more than the distribution of 395 parliamentary seats.

It will test whether political parties can reconnect with voters who have become sceptical about their ability to deliver meaningful improvements in employment, income and public services.

For younger Moroccans in particular, the election provides an opportunity to judge competing promises against problems that have contributed to unemployment, protests and migration pressures.

The official results will also determine which party finishes first and therefore which political force will be positioned to lead the next government.

But beyond the immediate political contest, the larger challenge for Morocco’s next administration will be converting economic growth and major national investments into jobs, affordable living conditions and improved public services.

With those issues dominating the campaign, Wednesday’s vote is being watched not only as a parliamentary election but also as a measure of how much confidence Moroccan voters still place in political parties to address their everyday concerns.