Morocco’s political debate over whether to participate in or boycott elections has intensified ahead of the country’s legislative elections scheduled for Sept. 23, 2026, as opposition movements and parties renewed longstanding disagreements over the electoral process.
While several political parties are preparing to contest the vote, organizations including Al Adl Wal Ihssane and Democratic Workers’ Way Party continue to advocate a boycott, arguing that the conditions for democratic elections are absent.
The debate resurfaced after Abdelilah Benkirane defended electoral participation in response to remarks by Mohammed Abbadi.
Benkirane said time had proven participation in elections to be the correct political choice, criticizing what he described as a strategy of waiting for favorable political moments while remaining outside the electoral process.
Abbadi, meanwhile, reiterated his movement’s longstanding position that meaningful political change cannot be achieved through Morocco’s existing institutions.
Reflecting on the period following the 2011 constitutional reforms, he argued that warnings previously addressed to the Justice and Development Party and the Movement for Unity and Reform had proved accurate because elected governments were unable to tackle what he described as systemic injustice and corruption despite leading the government for two terms.
The Democratic Workers’ Way Party has also reaffirmed its decision to boycott the upcoming legislative elections, describing them as “symbolic elections” and calling on citizens to abstain from voting.
In an interview with Hespress, the party’s secretary-general, Jamal Barjaa, said the decision reflects what he described as the country’s current political, economic and social conditions.
He argued that Morocco lacks the minimum guarantees for democratic elections, citing what he described as political repression, restrictions on opposition activity, and the detention of activists, journalists and bloggers.
Barjaa also criticized Morocco’s constitutional framework, arguing that institutions elected through the ballot box do not exercise genuine legislative or executive authority because major strategic decisions are taken outside parliament and government.
He further alleged that electoral laws and the administration of elections by the Interior Ministry influence the composition of elected institutions, while criticizing legal provisions criminalizing unfounded challenges to election results, which he said could discourage political criticism.
Barjaa maintained that his party’s position reflects growing public dissatisfaction, arguing that worsening socioeconomic conditions could increase support for an election boycott.
Despite their differing positions, he said political actors should be free to advocate either participation or boycott, emphasizing that his party’s criticism is directed at the electoral framework rather than individuals participating in the vote.
Morocco’s legislative elections are scheduled to take place on Sept. 23, 2026.
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