Jordanian voters go to the polls today to fill 130 seats in the country’s lower parliamentary house. Although 4.5 million of some 10 million Jordanians are eligible to vote for over 1,600 candidates running on close to 300 party lists, voter turnout will likely be low due to the coronavirus pandemic and the parliament’s relatively minor governing role. King Abdullah II, ruler of the Hashemite Kingdom, has the power to appoint and dissolve a government – and thus the parliament – at will, thereby leaving the legislative body with a diminished governing role. Jordan’s parliament is more representative than most other ruling bodies in the region, reserving 15 seats reserved for women, nine for Christians, and three for Chechens and Circassians. The election comes at a difficult time as the local economy has greatly suffered from the pandemic, due to repeated lockdowns and curfews. It has lost approximately $3 billion from the decimated tourism industry, a major economic engine. Unemployment jumped to 23% in the second quarter of 2020, and the poverty rate has reached over 17%.
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