Morocco's ruling Islamist party suffers stinging defeat, a triumph for the monarchy
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Following a significant victory for the National Rally of Independents (RNI) and the Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM), Dr. Giulia Cimini, Doctoral Fellow at the University of Bologna, remains quite skeptical of their ability to address systemic issues and foster real change in a coalition government. RNI and PAM, widely expected to form a coalition partnership in the new government, are closely linked to the powerful monarchy and are laser focused on pro-business, market friendly policies. As Dr. Cimini explains, "Most of the parties that will definitely take part in the new government were already part of the previous ones." With the current political landscape, Dr. Cimini is not inclined to believe that everyday life will significantly improve for the country's 37 million people. Rather the government will simply be embarking on a veritable political musical chairs. "All of these parties are not new to government coalitions and unfortunately I'm quite skeptical that they will be able to propose very significant structural reforms for the country." Adding to the complexity of the situation, Dr. Cimini remarks that "the results already show a very fragmented picture within the parliament. So perhaps, once again, we will have a very fractured government, as was the last one." In the end, the monarchy will be the ultimate victor.