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Party Organization in Flux: A Dive into the Moroccan Party of Justice and Development
Abstract
The Party of Justice and Development (PJD) played a decisive role in post-Arab uprisings in Morocco. Yet, a clear understanding of its structure is absent from the discourse on the party. After a decade in power, the PJD lost its electoral appeal. More than a year after the heavy defeat, the party with an Islamic background seeks to revive its components and structures to remedy its regression after losing much of its homogeneity and popularity. Focusing on the PJD, this paper asks how party organization affects political performance. Specifically, what internal organizational factors contributed to the decline of the Islamist party’s political appeal after gaining substantial power? Deriving its conclusions from primary sources, including its political thesis, general program, bylaws, and manifestos, election results, as well as interviews with party leaders and members, my assessment traces the trajectory of party decline from insights on the provisions related to internal processes and the organizational structure of the party. The findings suggest that many of the challenges faced by the PJD pertain to internal party politics, ranging from ideological compromises to polarization caused by leadership alterations.
Discipline
Political Science
Geographic Area
Islamic World
Maghreb
Mediterranean Countries
Morocco
Sub Area
None