Official Jordan poll results confirm Islamists' defeat (Roundup)

Nov 21, 2007, 15:59 GMT

Amman - Official results of Jordan's parliamentary elections as declared by Interior Minister Eid al-Fayez Wednesday showed that Islamists have received a severe blow unprecedented in two decades.

The Islamic Action Front (IAF), the country's largest political party, won only six seats at the new 110-member lower house of parliament, compared with 17 seats in the previous elections that were held in 2003.

The IAF accused the government of 'collusion with violations and rigging practices,' but al-Fayez told a press conference Wednesday that the polling process was conducted at 'the highest degree of transparency and neutrality'.

An IAF spokesman Jamil Abu Bakr told reporters that his group was demanding the 'cancellation of results in constituencies where rigging occurred.'

He cited vote buying, manipulation of voting cards and preventing candidate representatives from attending the counting of votes.

Observers blamed the Islamists' echoing defeat on a number of factors including internal feuds, steps taken by the government to tarnish the image of the country's Islamic movement and the takeover of the Gaza Strip by their Palestinian ally, Hamas.

At least 25 members of the outgoing house were returned in the new chamber which overwhelmingly consists of businessmen, independents and technocrats who counted on tribal and faction support to win seats for the first time, observers said.

Falak Jamaani was the second woman in Jordan's history to win a seat at the lower house of parliament through direct competition.

Six other women won seats in lieu of the feminist quota that was introduced for the first time in 2003.

A total of 885 candidates, including 199 women, competed in Tuesday's elections for the house's 110 seats.

Prime Minister Marouf Bakhit was expected to tender his government's resignation to King Abdullah II to pave the way for the formation of a new cabinet, officials said.