Mansouri’s coalition talks enter harder phase as Oct. 20 budget deadline nears

Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri entered the second week of negotiations to form Morocco’s next government with no coalition yet announced, as talks move from broad political consultations toward the harder questions of who joins, who gets which ministries and how the next cabinet is structured.

King Mohammed VI appointed Mansouri head of government on Sept. 29 after her Authenticity and Modernity Party won 97 of the House of Representatives’ 395 seats. A governing majority requires 198.

Article 47 of the Constitution requires the King to appoint the head of government from the party that finishes first and appoints ministers on the head of government’s proposal, but it sets no explicit deadline for completing coalition negotiations.

Political scientist Mustapha Sghiri told Hespress that the duration of the process depends less on the election result itself than on parliamentary arithmetic, compatibility between party programs and negotiations over responsibilities.

Constitutional law professor Abdelrahim Allam said talks can stretch across several stages: first deciding which parties enter the majority, then agreeing on the government program, distribution of portfolios, cabinet structure and the balance between political appointees and technocrats.

Those questions remain open after Mansouri’s first round of consultations. PAM has met the RNI, Istiqlal, PPS, UC, MP, MDS and USFP, while the PJD and Left Alliance declined to participate.

Speculation that the RNI could ultimately move into opposition has also entered the discussion, although the party’s National Council publicly said on Oct. 5 that it was willing to participate in the next government.

Morocco’s recent history shows how widely formation times can vary. In 2021, Aziz Akhannouch announced an RNI-PAM-Istiqlal coalition less than two weeks after being appointed. In 2016, by contrast, Abdelilah Benkirane spent about five months unable to assemble a government before being replaced by Saad Eddine El Othmani.

This year’s talks also face a practical calendar constraint: Morocco’s 2027 Finance Bill is due to be submitted to the House of Representatives by Oct. 20.

Friday’s royal speech added another layer, setting priorities on jobs, youth, territorial inequality, investment and deconcentration that the eventual coalition will have to translate into a government program.